


There’s An App For That

by nowjkjkjklololol



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-28
Updated: 2019-10-14
Packaged: 2020-02-08 17:18:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 48
Words: 154,457
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18627739
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nowjkjkjklololol/pseuds/nowjkjkjklololol
Summary: ** EDITING IN PROGRESS **Warnings include: language, drugs, drug use, underage drinking, video game violence, sexy situations, criminal activity, real violence, etcRoxas, new to college, meets a tall redhead and is instantly attracted to him...but isn’t willing to start sleeping around just for a one-time deal. In the meantime, he develops a project to keep his friend and drug dealer safe, but that puts him into the dangerous sights of a local crime syndicate. Will Roxas get his chance at a shot with Axel, or is their time running out before it can begin?





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!
> 
> Oh my goodness, it’s finally here!
> 
> This is the first fanfiction I’ve ever written, and the first work I’ve completed in like six years, so keep that in mind.
> 
> Hope you enjoy it, and as always, thanks for reading! <3

He was startled when he saw the people around him begin to move in unison; Roxas hadn’t been paying attention to the professor introducing the large lecture hall full of incoming college students to the class and course material and therefore had missed their dismissal. Since he hadn’t even bothered to pull out his notebook or pencils for that matter, all he had to do was stuff the syllabus they had been given into his bag and he was out the door. Milling around the tight hallway with the hundred or so people who were all eagerly chatting with neighbors and making friends was making Roxas sweat; he squeezed his way to a wall as quickly as possible and decided to wait them out, leaning against the wall and pulling out his headphones. By the time he had plugged them into his phone, jammed them into his ears, and loaded up a playlist, the hallway had started to become less chaotic. Once he had his volume adjusted and had skipped through to a song that fit his mood, the. hall had emptied bar a few small groups standing and chatting, so Roxas pushed off the wall and strode down the corridor to the set of double doors that would take him outside. As the air conditioning in the building rushed to escape with him, he was nearly pushed into a wall of hot, unmoving air and he fully understood what people had told him about the weather in Destiny Islands.  


Roxas had received pretty decent grades in high school. He had a lot of options available to him when it came to prospective colleges, but Destiny Islands University had immediately been what he decided on. It had an accredited computer science program, it had a huge student body which had appealed to Roxas at the time, and it put hundreds of miles of land and sea between him and the place he called home. Sure, he loved his family, he had a group of friends he hung around with, but he had never really had a solid, deep connection with anyone there. His dad worked long hours at a stressful job and came home wanting a beer in front of the TV. His mom was always busy, rushing around to keep the schedules of him and his three siblings as well as hers and his dad’s. They were loving and affectionate throughout his life, but those moments weren’t enough to make him want to stay at home a day longer than necessary. His friends were great for seeing between classes, grabbing lunch, and chilling around their hangout spot after school, but Roxas hadn’t seen Pence or Olette since the former promised they would all stay in touch while the latter had hugged him with tears in her eyes on their last day of school, and he last saw Hayner a week after that when he dropped by Roxas’ place for an evening of video game warfare and pizza with the family. Then silence all summer as everyone set about preparing for their new, separate lives.  


Roxas may have been a little over-eager; he found a campus program online that listed students looking for a roommate with a short bio on the student and immediately made himself a profile. He packed up everything he would take with when he left save for the essentials he would need to get through the summer. Once he had officially received his acceptance packet and information on signing up for classes and a mandatory, scheduled meeting with an academic advisor, he decided he wanted to get to Destiny Islands as soon as possible. The roommate search now on the forefront of his mind, Roxas messaged several students himself rather than waiting for someone else to message him. The first one to reply happened to have had a pretty chill-sounding bio, so Roxas had started making plans with the guy immediately. They exchanged personal numbers, and his new future roommate Sora told him that he was already living on Destiny Islands and had grown up there, so he was going to go drive around and look for a place in person. After several walkthroughs of places and an absolute ton of pictures, they settled on a two-bedroom apartment that was close enough to campus that they could walk, but was also on the campus bus route so they could take that instead. It had appealed to boys’ innate laziness, and they had shared a laugh over that. It was cheap, close to campus, and everything that two guys moving out into the world for the first time could want.  


Once that was settled, the two filled the remaining time until move in day by casually getting to know one another; prospective courses, Sora’s girlfriend, their families, and hobbies were some of the subjects they delved into. Sora also gave him a good mental picture of what he would be moving into. The area around DIU was a typical college town, heavy with bars and trendy restaurants and even trendier coffee shops, but Sora also knew where the cheapest grocery store around was, where Roxas could go to look at the city’s public transportation since he wouldn’t have his own car, and all the places you could order delivery from after midnight. He also told Roxas to brace himself for the weather; Traverse Town seemed to always lie under a blanket of clouds that sometimes let the sun peek through and other times would pour torrential amounts of rain or snow down upon the inhabitants, but Destiny Islands was...hot. That was what everyone said within a few sentences of bringing up the area. It was hot, almost year round. Sometimes the humidity was unbearable, sometimes it was dry as a bone, but the temperature usually centered around 100*. Sora told him over and over to say goodbye to sweaters, to start wearing shorts more often. He told him to leave his umbrella at home. ‘The few storms we do get here are the kind that would just rip it out of your hand anyway,’ were his exact words, which were less than comforting.  


Roxas had heard it, but when his plane touched down, Roxas walked into a warm but pleasant breeze coming in from the ocean that was still vaguely in sight. Sora had picked him up from the airport and they had driven straight to their leasing office to pick up their keys. In the car on the way there was the first time the boys had spoken face to face, and the drive was filled with companionable conversation as the two got acquainted. From there the introductions seemed unending; Sora’s girlfriend, whom Roxas quickly realized would be constantly attached to Sora’s hip, was already at the complex when they got there. She bounced excitedly into Sora’s arms as he and Roxas got out of the car, and remained there while Roxas unlocked the door and they stepped into what Roxas suspected would be the three of theirs’ first place. Then a large number of Sora’s friends and family trickled through over the course of the day to help Sora move in his things and the furniture they had bought for the place and stored in Sora’s parents’ garage. Roxas had transferred Sora money so he could buy him a bed, a desk, a bedside table, and to chip in for some living room furniture and a TV. Sora, to his credit, bought everything secondhand except for the mattress in order to conserve their money since Roxas would have to find a job when he settled in. The TV was perfect; it was an absolute monstrosity, an almost five foot wide display but an extremely outdated rear-projection one that took Sora, his brother, his dad, and two friends to carry it in from the car. That TV would be sitting in the welcoming cool of their apartment right now, that he had required be set at no higher than 70* as his stipulation when Sora and Kairi finally admitted that she would also unofficially be living there.  


Roxas quickly shook away the brief memory as his rising body temperature forced him to move. When he had first moved in, he spent the majority of his time indoors, setting up his things as they finally arrived after being shipped to him. Even this morning, the air had still had the coolness of night softening it since Roxas had left right after the sun had risen. This was his first true taste of the heat of his new home, and he had not been ready. By the time he was rounding the corner of the building and could see the bus stop, Roxas was already starting to sweat, and he watched his luck flatline in front of him as he watched his bus pull away. Roxas groaned. The busses ran on a thirty minute schedule, so if he wanted to ride one he would be stuck sitting at the stop, baking for half an hour before getting on the cramped bus and having to suffer for a twenty minute drive through the city before making it back to his own apartment. Or he could brave the twelve minute walk.  


Inwardly groaning, Roxas shouldered his bag a little more comfortably and began his trek. It really wasn’t bad; a straight shot down the road he was on until he hit the first row of residential houses, and then left down that street until he reached his apartment complex. That was why they’d chosen this place after all, Roxas reminded himself. The heat had him sweating hard by the time the houses were close enough to make out their details. The one at the corner was a massive, two story old Victorian that you could tell housed several rowdy students, if the beer cans littering the front lawn had anything to say. Unable to think beyond his sole focus of making it home as quickly as possible, this detail along with any others he made along his walk disappeared as quickly as they came to be. When his complex came into sight, Roxas pushed himself to quicken his pace despite the sweat pouring from him. He was absolutely worn out by the time he reached their door.  


He slouched on the couch in their living room once he had made it into the door, bag promptly forgotten where he had discarded it as he entered. He sat in silence for a few moments as he gathered his willpower to stand again. When he finally stood a few moments later, he began his ‘welcome home’ ritual, first walking to the TV and booting it up as well as his old Xbox 360. Continuing his wide arc of the living room, he shambled down the tiny hallway and straight through to his room. Grabbing a small wooden box on his desk and a new shirt off the back of his chair, he kept his momentum going, looping back down the hall and through to the kitchen to grab a beer out of the fridge. Ending his sweep of the apartment back where he started, Roxas set everything down on the coffee table in front of him and dropped back into position on the couch. He started with the controller left on the table from the night before; he clicked his way through the home screen and into the game he was currently re-playing. As Skyrim’s familiar loading screen music began, he popped the tab on the cheap beer he and his roommate had filled their fridge with and threw back a huge swig, then set it aside for the moment as he pulled off his drenched shirt and replaced it with the dry one. Then he flipped open the box. A small glass pipe, grinder, rolling papers, and a baggie of weed that was decidedly more bag than weed greeted him. A long sigh escaped Roxas as he rubbed his forehead and frowned slightly. The worst part of moving to a new town was the loss of connections. He had brought a huge bag with him when he left his home in Traverse Town, but the anxiety and stress of moving and starting classes had helped to dwindle his supply down faster than he had anticipated, as well as his tendency to be generous with his stash when he was making friends. Drinking, smoking, and rambunctious rounds of video games had been the nightly agenda since he first met Sora and Kairi.  


As he ground up the last of his weed, he mused that Sora must know someone who would have some to sell, since the pair smoked as well. Roxas loaded up his little pipe, fished a lighter out of his pocket, and took a slow hit. The first one let his tense muscles start to relax. A second reminded him of his beer, which he took another long pull of. After the third, he placed his pipe and lighter on the table in exchange for the controller. Starting to relax with a gentle fuzziness beginning to gather like a cloud around himself, Roxas settled in to wait for his roommates.  


Of course today the pair took their sweet time getting home; Sora and Kairi pushed their way inside lugging a heavy-looking box and a huge armload of clothes respectively, making it clear they had gone to Kairi’s parents home to pick up more of her things to bring over. As they dropped their things right inside the door like Roxas had, he held up his pipe, loaded with the last of his supply. The two gratefully took it as they settled themselves onto the couch to watch Roxas play with muttered thanks.  


“Actually, on that note,” Roxas began, his in game character attempting to make his horse carry him up the steep sides of a mountain, “this is the last of the stuff I brought from home. Do you guys know of someone around here I could hit up?” Kairi giggled, passing the pipe his way for his turn in rotation.  


“No problem. We usually just ask my brother to grab some for us; he lives right by campus and his roommate sells it.” Sora nodded enthusiastically, taking the piece from Roxas.  


“Til Kairi gets a reply from him, we’ll take a turn loading it. Gaia knows we’re definitely overdue.” Roxas snorted, giving up on his horse’s attempt at scaling a mountain and letting his character slide back down so he could go around. Kairi pulled out her phone and began typing out a message while Sora slipped to their room, returning quickly with a baggie of his own. He let Roxas focus on his game, reaching over and scooping up the grinder to start the process. Kairi nodded to herself, setting the phone on the table and then putting her feet up on Sora’s lap as she laid back on the far end of the couch. Roxas ended up grabbing another beer for himself as well as one for each of his roommates, and the three spent the next hour or so comfortably hanging out, passing the bowl between themselves and cracking jokes at the expense of Roxas’ in-game character. Roxas felt his fingers twitch reflexively at the sound of a phone going off, and Kairi scooped it right up, opening and skimming over her message quickly.  


“Well Sor, I guess I’m taking Roxas with me. Wanna come too, or are you gonna start looking at that calc we have to do?” Kairi asked offhandedly, typing out her reply. Roxas stares at her blankly.  


“Oh, is your brother not...” Roxas trailed off, too grateful that the source was located to truly wish that it was going to come to him. Without looking up, Kairi filled them in.  


“Axel has decided that he doesn’t want to be middle man for the whole house; he’s gonna have me introduce you to Dem so you can text him yourself.” Roxas nodded, pausing his game and tossing the controller onto the table as he stood and stretched out his finally-relaxed muscles.  


“I’ll stay,” Sora answered, rising as well and walking over to gather Kairi’s abandoned belongings. “Dem already knows me. I’ll take this stuff to our room and get us set up for calc I guess, ugh.” The shift from joking to pouting had both Roxas and Kairi chuckling, but Kairi finally stood as well. She went to Sora, giving him a hug goodbye and simultaneously fishing in his pocket for the car keys. With a final exaggerated, smacking kiss goodbye, Kairi grabbed Roxas’ sleeve and gently tugged him out the door. She led him to the car barely able to keep herself silent, Roxas could tell she was going to let loose once they were safely away from any potentially overheating ears. As soon as the doors to the car had closed, his suspicions were confirmed as Kairi began to speak.  


“You’re really gonna like Dem. He’s super chill and really funny, he and my brother have been living together in this awesome house since the end of their freshman year. He doesn’t let people give out his number without meeting the new person first, but I swear half of Destiny Islands knows him. His name’s Demyx though, don’t call him Dem unless he gives the okay. He says I’m basically his little sister though, so-“ The car was barely out of the parking space as Kairi filled him in cheerfully, and Roxas silently wondered how long of a drive he was in for. She was sweet and funny and absolutely committed to Sora; Roxas actually enjoyed her company whether Sora was present or not, but the girl was rarely silent for very long. He had picked a school with a large population with the desire to meet lots of people as he started his life anew, but Roxas’ innate reclusiveness and mild social anxiety had made his discomfort an almost tangible thing. Sora and Kairi had pushed their way past his inner barriers easily, quickly becoming closer to him than any of his friends back home, and yet the idea of being introduced to people still made his stomach churn uneasily. Roxas forced himself to pay attention to the words still continuing to fall uninterrupted from Kairi’s lips. “-they have this kitten, well I guess she’s more of a cat now, that he and Axe treat like their child. She’s absolutely gorgeous, she’s a ragdoll kitten and they used to argue about who she would sleep with but now it’s almost a contest between them to see who can get her to come to them. They’re so funny; people are always asking if they’re a couple but I’m pretty sure Dem’s not gay, and anyway Axe bitches enough about being ‘alone forever’ that I’d know if they were a couple in secret.” Now Roxas was beginning to wonder if he was going to know too much about these guys. Tuning Kairi out again, he turned to look out the window and with a jolt he realized they were almost back to campus, retracing his walk home from earlier. Still talking a mile a minute, Kairi sharply spun the wheel and they smoothly pulled into what was once a narrow driveway, but the dying and flattened grass to the left of the vehicle showed that it was a makeshift parking lot at times.  


“Isn’t it beautiful?” Kairi continued as they stepped out of the vehicle and looked up at the old Victorian Roxas had passed by previously. “Don’t worry, the inside is always trashed, but it’s such a wonderful piece of architecture anyway,” she finished almost wistfully as they reached the door on the side of the house nearest the driveway. Rather than knocking, however, Kairi pulled out her phone.  


“Hey, we’re here,” she said easily into the device. A brief pause preceded a light bark of laughter from her, “It was really that bad? It’s like four in the afternoon! Sure, sure. He won’t mind? Alright, thanks Axe.” Kairi rolled her eyes at Roxas, ending the call and reaching for the door handle.  


“They threw a rager last night, apparently my brother is STILL in bed nursing his hangover. He said to go on in.” With that, she was leading Roxas in through a kitchen entrance and as they stepped over cups, cans, bottles, and the occasional slice of pizza, he vaguely promised himself he would make it to at least one party like the one they must have had the previous night. Through the kitchen, there was a clustered branching out of doorways; past one he could see a set of stairs leading to the upper floor, another led to a small hallway, and he found himself following Kairi through a third and into a large living room. The lighting was dim; overhead lights, a lamp in the corner, and even the TV were all turned off, leaving the only light illuminating the room and its inhabitants what little seeped in around the curtain covering the window. There was music playing softly, and since the only acknowledgement to their arrival was a soft grunt from the couch, Roxas looked around awkwardly as Kairi sighed and began weaving her way towards said couch up against the far wall. The dim lighting only allowed him to take in that the walls appeared to be covered floor to ceiling in some sort of fabric, that there was a drum kit taking up a quarter of the room, that there were three other inhabitants lounging around other than the blonde Kairi was nudging on the couch, and that he was getting an awesome artsy, musical, bohemian vibe from the place before Kairi was waving him over.  


Demyx was laying back against the couch, his head resting on the back and his arm dramatically thrown over his eyes. As Roxas edged around the furniture, bodies, and debris littering the room and neared them, he heard a low groan from Demyx as Kairi flopped gracelessly down next to him, bouncing him slightly.  


“Demmm sit up and meet Roxas, and we’ll get out of your hair,” Kairi all but whined, tugging lightly on the sleeve of his baseball shirt. With another, more pronounced groan, Demyx lurched forward, leaning his elbows on his knees and looking up at Roxas. He was gangly-looking, tall and thin with his shaggy blonde hair resembling both a mullet and faux-hawk at once. Roxas could tell at once that this guy was super laid back despite the look of nausea that flashed across his face with the motion of leaning forward. Demyx grinned quickly, however, extending a hand for Roxas to shake.  


“So you’re the roommate I’ve been hearing about! What’s up man, I’m Demyx,” he said as enthusiastically as Roxas was sure he was able to. He put his hand in Demyx’s, shaking it and then letting his drop.  


“Yeah, man, how’s it going?” Not the best at small talk, Roxas hopes Kairi would interject soon, and was not disappointed.  


“Axel said he didn’t wanna middle man for all three of us, but Roxas is super chill, we’ve actually smoked him dry,” she said with a hint of guilt, peeking back over her shoulder and blushing slightly. Demyx laughed quickly, drawing a moan from a figure with pink hair slumped in an armchair to Demyx’s left.  


“Dude I’m so not ready for laughter yet,” the guy complained in a smooth, quiet voice. Demyx tossed a pillow off the couch at his friend, who grabbed it and quickly used it to cover his head.  


“Forgive us, but we had the most epic party last night, and well,” Demyx shrugged weakly, gesturing around the room, “this is the result. Anyway, what can I do for you?” The joking, overly dramatic tone rolled right into the polite question, and it took Roxas a second to follow along.  


“Uh, yeah. How much for an eighth?” He usually picked up more at once, but whenever he met a new source, he liked to feel them out and try out the product before he committed. Demyx seemed to read his mind, or maybe he was used to it, because he started an automatic response as he began pulling supplies seemingly from nowhere. A scale was suddenly on the table, along with several baggies and a grinder.  


“Thirty for an eighth, fifty for a quarter. Buyer’s choice on indica, sativa, or a hybrid. I can do larger quantities if you give me a heads up so I don’t sell myself short. And as always, you’re more than welcome to try it out,” he rattled off, reaching over the armrest and pulling out a huge bong. Roxas stared for a second, unsure if the offer was legit or just politely daring him to request a sample, but Kairi plucking it out of Demyx’s hand and taking a huge rip herself was all the answer he needed.  


“Which is this?” he asked, taking the offered piece from Kairi and taking a deep hit himself. The flavor was much nicer than he expected; it was light and sweet, but that gave him a false sense of security before his hit ended with a series of hard coughs as the potency struck him. Still wheezing, he handed the bong back to Demyx, who was chuckling.  


“A hybrid. Gelato,” Demyx said almost smugly. “It gets everyone, but it’s soo nice.” He took a huge rip of his own, holding it up to offer to the other people around, and then handed it back to Kairi when no one made a move. “You’ll relax, but you’ll still wanna get shit done.” Roxas was already noticing the first effect, feeling his body quickly begin to relax as his muscles seemed to forget about everything they had pulled him through over the course of the day.  


“This stuff is legit, can I grab this one?” he asked, taking a much more cautious hit when it was his turn again. Demyx nodded, beginning to measure some out onto the scale, and Roxas noted happily that Demyx was intentionally heavy-handed in his measurement. He slid everything from the scale into a little plastic baggie with practiced movements, and held it out to Roxas while glancing at Kairi.  


“What about you, sis? You guys still good?” Kairi nodded, leaning her head onto his shoulder and grinning.  


“Yeah, we were here day before yesterday, you big goof,” she teased, sitting back up again as Roxas took the offered bag and passed some munny back. Demyx shrugged, slipping the cash into the box the weed had been pulled from.  


“To be fair, I didn’t remember if that visit was business or pleasure,” he joked back, standing up when she did and giving her a casual hug as she stepped towards where Roxas was still standing. “Really, you guys need to come by more. We miss you! Bring Roxas with you next time,” he threw a wink and a huge grin at Roxas, who returned it with a smile of his own. “Come on, I’ll walk you guys out.” The three of them slipped out of the darkened room, and the natural light filling the kitchen seemed too bright in its place. Demyx gave a small hiss but kept walking, only pausing to add, “Hey man, it was nice to meet you. Get Kairi to give you my number, and feel free to hit me up any time.”  


Roxas nodded, giving a, “yeah, for sure, I definitely will,” as Kairi waved, said goodbye, and tugged her roommate out the door. As they were walking back to the car, Roxas’ shyness fell away as if it had never existed. “He was nice,” he began, but Kairi cut him off almost before he finished the thought.  


“I’m sorry they were all so dead, I knew about the party but since we didn’t go, I had no idea how crazy it had been. Usually we stay and hang out for a while. I think Dem liked you though! He’s never told me to bring a friend back by when Sora and I come to chill with Axe, that should tell you something.” She giggled lightly, backing them out of the driveway and back towards their place. Roxas found himself a much more willing participant in this conversation, however. By the time they pulled in and were parking, Roxas was trying to get a handle on the laughter that had stemmed from Kairi’s retelling of a beer pong championship Demyx and her brother had hosted recently.  


“You should have seen him! He could barely stand, but Sora sunk the last shot like a pro. Everyone went absolutely nuts! Poor Demyx was so wasted that he was cheering for Sora until Axe reminded him we had just beat them at their own tournament.” Roxas slammed the door shut behind him, leaning against it heavily as his laughter followed through the mental image of Demyx cheering Sora for beating him. Kairi was still giggling herself as she locked the car and led him to their door. “We’ll drag you along to the next party for sure, though by the looks of those guys it won’t be for a while.” Roxas followed her inside, sinking onto the couch while Kairi set off towards the room she shared with Sora.  


“Hey Kairi? Thanks,” Roxas called after her, and with an exaggerated bow and a giggle, Kairi bounced off to find Sora. Roxas pulled out his baggie and got to work seeing just how potent Demyx’s product was.


	2. Chapter Two

He hadn’t even made it three days. Roxas shook his head, loading up the last of Demyx’s Gelato and taking a few quick hits before jumping in the shower. Today was his last first day of classes; he had been to everything else except a general Art History which was required as a core class, despite him not majoring in art. He opted to take it his first semester rather than later like most students did because he wanted to get anything not major-related out of the way first and then submerge himself in his field of study. To be honest, though, he was probably the least enthusiastic to be attending a lecture on art history. Sure, all the core requirements were generally boring, but he was dreading a lecture on the sorts of paintings that hung in stuffy museums. He grumbled as he stepped out of the warm shower and toweled himself dry, taking his sweet time until he finally picked up his phone and - 

“Shit!” Roxas exclaimed out loud, wrapping himself quickly in the towel, grabbing his things from the shared bathroom, and hustling into his room. Lost in his thoughts, he was now running late for the bus, and if he missed it he’d end up late for his class. He threw on the first clothes his hands touched, hopping out of his room still buttoning his jeans, and scooped his bag up from its usual place by the door as he yanked it open. As he dashed towards the bus stop, he had a split second of relief wash over him as he saw another college-aged girl walking quickly towards the stop as well, but almost immediately that was dashed as he saw her reach the sidewalk, look down the street, and then throw her bag down on the ground angrily. Roxas slowed to a walk, knowing that he’d missed the bus, but when he made it to where the girl was standing by the stop, he still felt the need to confirm. 

“Did it leave us?” The girl huffed angrily, glaring down the street in the direction it had gone. 

“Yes! He must have rolled by since no one was waiting at the stop, but I KNOW he saw me coming!” Roxas watched her struggle to regain composure. Then she looked back at him, smiling gently. “Oh well. At least I’m not waiting alone.” Roxas smiled back at the girl, taking in her short, pastel blue hair and the fact that she was almost a head taller than him, though that wasn’t far too uncommon; Roxas was only five foot six, he was used to being the shortest person in a group. He glanced away quickly, pulling out his phone and opening a message to Kairi. He still needed to get Demyx’s number from her, but since he hadn’t seen her, or Sora for that matter, all morning, there was a good chance neither of them had gotten up yet. It was only nine in the morning and the pair kept late hours; if they didn’t have a morning class, it was almost guaranteed they wouldn’t stir til after noon. He glanced back up and saw the girl looking at him expectantly, and realized he must have tuned her soft voice out. 

“Oh, sorry, what was that?” She looked a little embarrassed. 

“I’m sorry, am I interrupting? It’s not-“ but Roxas interjected. 

“No, not at all, I just totally spaced. What did you ask?” he ventured, hoping belatedly that it had in fact been a question. 

“Are you headed to class?” she said again, laughter in her eyes. He nodded. 

“Art History 2360. The core requirement one. What about you?” She looked at him thoughtfully before she responded. 

“I’m going to Methods of Rhetorical Criticism. Communication Studies, before you ask. And that’s awesome, so you’re a sophomore?” He shook his head quickly. 

“Oh, no, just a freshman taking all his classes out of order. I had a few credits from high school that let me skip some, and I decided I’d take all core and then all focus rather than some of each like they recommend.” Roxas laughed lightly, scratching the back of his head in an embarrassed sort of way. “Didn’t mean to give the wrong impression. How far in are you?” She chuckled, picking up her bag off the ground. 

“I AM a sophomore, it was probably just wishful thinking. I’m Aqua, by the way.” She held out a hand and Roxas took it, shaking it once then pulling his hand away. 

“Roxas,” he replied. Then, before he could stop himself, he added, “my brother is a sophomore. He’s knocking out his core courses at the community college back home.” The girl’s patient, expecting blue eyes had made him feel the need to continue speaking, even though his reservoir of casual conversation was rapidly dwindling. 

“Yeah? Where’s ‘back home’?” she prodded. 

“Traverse Town. I grew up there; still getting used to all this heat,” he finished lamely, well aware that with ‘weather’ entering the conversation, he was officially out of things to say. Aqua laughed, exaggeratedly wiping her forehead as if she were sweating profusely. 

“It definitely takes some getting used to, that’s for sure,” she said kindly, laughing like a tinkling bell. “I was originally from Land of Departure, if you’ve ever heard of it. Not many people have. I think the population total comes to like five or something,” she joked. 

“I think Traverse had a few more than that at least. Hell, my own house had more than that,” he teased back, but ended on an almost melancholy note. 

“You have a big family?” she ventured, though it was more a statement than question. 

“Four of us besides my parents,” he supplied. “I’ve got my older brother Ventus, and twin sisters Namine and Xion. They’re about a year younger than I am.” 

“Wow, that must have been nice. I always wanted a sister,” she sighed wistfully. Not wanting to spoil her mental image of siblings, Roxas floundered for something to say, and the two fell into an awkward silence. After a few moments in which Roxas began to question if something was actually wrong with him, the sounds of a vehicle approaching from the distance saved him. Aqua broke the silence upon clearly seeing the next bus approaching from behind him. 

“Well, obviously I live right here, so I’m sure I’ll see you around, Roxas. It was nice to meet you.” She smiled widely, and started to turn towards the stop as the bus groaned its way to a halt. 

“Yeah, you too!” He agreed, and then stood as he waited for her to finish stepping on before he followed. Since their stop was the last before campus, the bus was usually packed, and today was no exception. Aqua managed to find a seat towards the back, but after Roxas saw he would end up standing, he chose the closest position to the door for a quicker exit. Then they were moving, the old bus shuddering as it lurched forward and almost throwing Roxas off-balance with the sudden motion. If he ran, and if he knew exactly where he was going, he might be able to make right as class started. As it was, however, he at least knew where the building was and what the room number was. He’d never been there before, though, so he would be searching for a little. He was also sure a quick walk would be the extent to which he would push his speed, as he didn’t want to already be the awkward running kid. He would take a few minutes of lateness to avoid that embarrassment. However, as soon as the bus slowed to a stop, Roxas was out the door and rushing his way towards the building which held his classroom. When he had found and entered the building, he couldn’t believe his luck; his room was directly in front of the doors he had barreled through. He peeked through the window before he pushed it open and died inside, though, because the door led to a huge lecture hall that was very full, and would open right next to a professor standing in the front already speaking to the students. For a second, Roxas considered skipping the class entirely to avoid having to walk in and announce his lateness in front of what had to be at least a hundred and fifty students, but as he looked around helplessly, his eyes landed on a staircase leading up to his left. Roxas took it quickly, hoping against hope that it led to a higher level of the lecture hall and thus would let him sneak in much less obviously, and for once today his luck held; the staircase was longer than expected, but led to the top corner of the room and would let him walk in behind the last row of seats. He gingerly opened the door, stepped through quickly, and then held it lightly so that it would click shut almost inaudibly. He scanned the back row and luck struck again; there was an empty seat one person in from the end. He lifted his bag a little higher and stepped past the person sitting on the end seat, and then collapsed into the empty one gratefully. 

His neighbor leaned over and whispered, “Yo, you haven’t really missed anyth- wait, Roxas?!” Roxas swiveled his head around at the familiar voice and found himself looking at Demyx. “What are the odds? What’s up man?” 

“Hey, man, I was literally just trying to get your number from Kai. You’re stuck in here too?” Demyx rubbed the back of his head embarrassedly. 

“Took it last year but failed hard, soo here I am.” He laughed quietly, then nodded his head towards Roxas’ phone and held out his hand. Roxas passed it over and watched Demyx program in his number, handing it back quickly. 

“Did you have this professor too? Am I totally screwed if I don’t care about super old paintings?” Again Demyx chortled under his breath. 

“Only a little is paintings, he also covers sculpture, architecture, and periods in history. There’s a LOT to memorize, and you know me...let’s just say I’m not great in the memorization department.” Roxas chuckled along with him this time, until a quick ‘shh!’ emanated from one of the people in front of them. He frowned, but turned back to Demyx anyway. 

“Hey, I was trying to get ahold of you though. Do you have another class after this one?” he asked quietly. Demyx shook his head. 

“Nah man, not until this evening. Wanna follow me home?” 

“Absolutely,” Roxas answered, but at the same time the shusher from before made themselves known as a petite, dark haired girl who turned around in her seat to glare at them. 

“Do you MIND?” she whispered harshly with a frown. Demyx just shrugged, but Roxas made a face at the back of her head when she spun around again, causing his fellow blonde to shake with laughter before sighing and pulling out his own phone. Roxas propped his head up with an arm resting on the fold-down desk, and gave half his attention to the older man speaking away below. The course was blocked as a twice a week, two hour lecture. He would have it Thursday and Friday mornings, and he was crossing his fingers that this was the sort of professor who would let them go whenever they decided they had talked enough for the day. At about an hour in, the professor addressed that topic himself. 

“Well, this is where I’ll end today’s introduction. However, from this point onward, I expect your full, undivided attention for the entirety of the TWO hours of my lecture. I take attendance at the END of this lecture, and from today forward the entrances will be shut and LOCKED promptly when my time begins, at nine fifteen EXACTLY.” Roxas could have sworn the man was glaring directly at him, and he shrunk down in his seat, trying to disappear. “If you have any questions, please see me. For everyone else, I’m placing a sign in sheet on the desk down here. Please sign it and enjoy your free hour today.” The class quickly began to move in unison, most students hurrying to get to the front and the sheet as quickly as possible. Roxas probably would have waited to get up for a minute since they were in the farthest back row, but Demyx jumped up and moved aside with Roxas following quickly after the first person who attempted to squeeze past him in their efforts to get to ground level. He stood with Demyx until the crowd began to disperse and he felt like he could finally be heard over the general buzz of students talking amongst themselves. 

“Well, this guy seems like a dick,” he said humorously. Demyx nodded enthusiastically, then gestured around dramatically. 

“This is exactly why I didn’t sign up for a class after this one. This whole stupid ordeal where he makes an entire lecture hall of students all sign a paper up front takes FOREVER, but fuck if I’m gonna lose credit for being here for two whole hours.” He sighed disgustedly, shaking his head as he began meandering towards the front with Roxas at his heel. “He does it this way so you have to come, because with it up front and him and his TAs watching, you can’t sign in a friend. We tried it last year; it didn’t go down well.” Demyx shook his head again, this time with a faint smile on his face. “I honestly will never know how Axel managed to pass this class. He’s just as much of a slacker as I am,” Demyx trailed off his grumbling as they neared the cluster of people trying to reach for the sheet. Roxas used his smaller stature to his advantage; he had squeezed his way in, left his scribbled name on the sheet, and briskly strode away before Demyx had even made it close enough to be fighting for space. He waited by the doors until Demyx managed to extract himself from the other students and then they both pushed through the doors until they made it outside. 

“Oh Gaia, I can already tell I’m going to dread this class,” Roxas huffed, trying to keep pace with the lanky Demyx’s long strides. 

“You say that now, just wait til exams roll around,” Demyx warned, and Roxas answered with an exaggerated groan. Demyx laughed at that, then pulled out his phone. “Hey, mind if we make a quick pit stop?” 

“Nah, man, just lead the way,” Roxas answered, and Demyx changed their direction, leading Roxas towards the campus library. Roxas looked at the other blonde quizzically, but Demyx led him through the heavy doors without hesitation and made a beeline towards the stairs. They made their way up two flights and then onto a quiet floor that had only a few students occupying the tables that were provided for studying and workspaces. They kept going, heading towards the rows of bookshelves around the corner. Roxas was now thoroughly confused as to what was going on, unless Demyx was picking up a specific book that he already knew the exact location of by heart. Demyx finally stopped them in between two rows about halfway down the stacks, looking for all the world like he was browsing the books. As Roxas glanced at the titles, he was now certain that something was up, unless his friend had an interest in obscure architecture and design topics. Demyx didn’t explain himself, however, and the longer they stood there the weirder the whole thing seemed to Roxas until another student bustled around the corner and walked right up to Demyx. 

“Bro, you’re the best,” the tall brunette male said in a voice that was a perfect fit for ‘stereotypical pot-headed college dude.’ He put his hand casually on the shelf by Demyx’s shoulder as if he were leaning up against it, but almost immediately stepped back again, and Roxas saw some munny where his hand had been. He had to stop himself from letting out an audible groan at his own stupidity as everything clicked into place. 

“Oh for sure my man,” Demyx replied, clasping the stranger’s hand in what looked like a casual manner, but Roxas saw the brunette turn his hand into a fist and slip it into his pocket discreetly. “See you around!” Demyx said cheerfully, scooping up the munny and then starting to walk back in the direction they had come from with Roxas hurrying along after him. He didn’t say anything until they had left the building behind them and were again heading in the direction of his house. “Sorry about that,” he began offhandedly. “I didn’t wanna make him swing by my place since we were both on campus already. I didn’t figure you’d mind way too much.” 

“What? Oh no, not at all, it’s fine,” Roxas was quick to reassure. He didn’t want Demyx thinking he didn’t want to be around something like that, or that he was a hassle to have around. It did seem to put Demyx more at ease. 

“Awesome. I’ll smoke you out as an apology,” he laughed, then changed the subject abruptly. “So, uh...you play any instruments?” Thrown by the quick turn in conversation, Roxas floundered. 

“Uh, like outside of high school?” He wanted to kick himself as the words left his mouth. “I mean, sorta. I know a few chords on the guitar. I can play the piano a little. What about you?” Demyx nodded at his responses but brightened up considerably when the question was turned onto him. 

“Yeah man! Did you see the drums at our place last time? Those are mine,” he said proudly, exaggeratedly drumming the air with imaginary drum sticks. “I have a sitar, too, and she’s my baby. I’m here for music. Performance Specialty BA.” he continued. 

“Really? That’s so dope,” Roxas said enthusiastically. “Which one are you specializing in for your degree?” Demyx snorted. 

“My sitar. There’s no way I’d leave my drum kit up at school, and there’s no way in hell I’d transport it for every class.” He shuddered at the thought of so much physical labor, and Roxas laughed. They had reached the front of Demyx’s house, and Demyx led them up the paved path to the front door which Roxas had never stepped through. Unlocking it, Demyx gestured dramatically for Roxas to enter. As he walked into the home’s main entrance, he paused for a second, trying to orient himself. There was a tiny study off to the left that had a bookshelf overflowing with books and a few old, beaten up couches crammed into it. To the right was a closed door, and then a tiny dark hallway led straight ahead. Before he had time to actually move, however, Demyx had shut the door and passed Roxas on his way down the hall. As he made it into the now-lit kitchen, he was back in familiar territory, and knew right where they were headed. Demyx strolled into the living room, which was missing the debris and people from before but had one added element. 

“Boo!” Demyx cooed, scooping up a beautiful, brown and white long haired cat with strikingly blue eyes. She let out a delicate meow and butted her head against Demyx’s, settling into his arms as he walked across the room to the couch. Roxas opted for the chair off to the side that had been occupied by the pink-haired male when he was last here, and dropped his bag down next to the seat as he collapsed into it. Demyx was still loving on his cat, rubbing her chin and getting a rumbling purr out of her for his actions. “Isn’t she just the most beautiful kitty ever?” he said, and Roxas couldn’t help but to agree; he’s never seen a cat quite as pretty as that. 

“She totally is,” Roxas said while offering his fingertips to the cat to sniff. She did, and then curiously followed his hand when he pulled it back, jumping off of Demyx’s lap and onto the arm of Roxas’s chair. 

“Boo, what gives, you traitor?” Demyx acted like she had physically wounded him with her snub, but then reached over the arm of the couch for his bong. 

“Hey little cat,” Roxas said quietly, softly stroking the cat along her head and back. She arched up into his hand, then dropped down on his lap and laid down. Demyx looked startled as he paused loading the bowl to stare at them. 

“Roxas, she’s totally taken with you. She’s a sweetheart, but usually just to me and Axe. I’ve never seen her snuggle up with a stranger.” He shook his head and got back to work, handing Roxas the fruits of his labor after just a second. 

“I feel so special,” Roxas laughed, taking the bong gingerly so as not to disturb the cat now sleeping across his legs. He sparked up the lighter and took a hit, getting more accustomed to the force of the piece. 

“You should,” Demyx retorted, taking the bong back from Roxas for his own hit. Roxas took that second to look around the room now that it wasn’t shrouded in darkness. The drum kit was a beautiful ocean blue, complete with what looked like custom artwork on the bass drum’s front of ocean waves. The walls were in fact covered; carpet tiles and small rugs made up a patchwork mosaic that covered three of the walls in the room. The most interior wall of the room was also covered, but that one housed a gallery of artworks. Some were smaller and framed, some were huge canvases, and intermittently on small shelves what looked like notebooks or sketchbooks were propped up and open to various pages, but they were all extremely impressive. Below them was a large TV and speaker set up, with a few consoles attached on a shelf below it and a pile of controllers off to the side. The floors looked like well-worn, ancient hardwood, but it was hard to tell from the handful of rugs partially overlapping each other across it. Demyx’s couch had a matching loveseat right next to the drum, and aside from Roxas’ chair there were three more scattered around. The room was clearly used to housing many people at once, and was impressive to say the very least. “You should be glad Axel’s got class right now. He’d be devastated.” Demyx passed the bowl back, interrupting Roxas’ survey of the room. He took his hit, holding it in. 

“Well,” he said in a muffled voice before exhaling and handing the bong over, “please tell him I’m not trying to steal your cat, I’m just a big softie for animals and they seem to be able to tell.” Demyx chortled, taking the glassware from Roxas for his turn. 

“Do you have any?” he asked Roxas, who looked down at the ball of fur in his lap and petting her gently while he answered. 

“Nah,” came his forlorn response. “My sisters are allergic, and I’m still getting used to this place and my roommates myself.” Demyx made a small sound that voiced a pitying understanding. 

“I’m sure Kai and Sora would love it, though,” he went on. “They watched Boo for us when Axe and I drove down for the big Chain of Memories music festival last year. Which was absolutely SICK, but that’s another story. They were really good with her,” he concluded, giving the bong back. “That girl is the sweetest, spunkiest little firecracker I’ve ever met. I really don’t understand how she and Axel came from the same home,” he ribbed his missing roommate good-naturedly. Roxas snorted. 

“I’m not sure the world could handle two Kairis,” he cracked, then added, “and that’s cashed,” as he handed the bong over. 

“You’re probably right about that,” Demyx conceded, loading some more into the bowl. “Hey, you play any video games? I’m about ready to chill.” It was Roxas’ turn to perk up with interest. 

“Bro, unless you play a LOT more than I imagine, I can kick your ass in anything.” Demyx smirked at his self-assuredness and got up, passing the bong to Roxas as he went. He booted up the TV and one of the consoles. 

“How are you at Halo?” Demyx called, rummaging through a pile of cases off to the side of his entertainment system. 

“Good enough,” Roxas replied smugly. Demyx popped a disk into the tray and walked back, exchanging the bong Roxas held out with a controller before plopping back down in what Roxas had determined was ‘his spot.’ 

“You’re going down, dude,” came from Demyx as he got them through several screens and into the Halo 3 multiplayer lobby, with Roxas signed into Axel’s profile. Thus began a battle of absolutely epic proportions the likes of which Roxas had never experienced. They played for hours, fighting each other as well as interchangeable online opponents in Slayer mode. Despite being competitively engrossed in destroying anyone who crossed his path, Roxas noticed people filtering in and out over the course of the day. Sometimes their audience was just a handful of people, but at a few points the sounds of cheering onlookers indicated that a small crowd had formed. Several stayed and never ended up leaving; Roxas recognized the pink-haired guy from his first visit among the ones who just came to hang out. He took the seat next to Demyx on the couch and took over the job of keeping the bong perpetually loaded and in rotation. Demyx would distribute weed and take money between rounds, and the bong was being passed in a giant circle constantly, but as soon as the countdown started each time, he abandoned whatever he was doing to hastily pick up the controller and ready himself. Jokes, insults, jeers, cheers, and groans peppered the air heavily as everyone watched Roxas in his element; he was an unstoppable force. Lethal with any weapon, when he was able to get his hands on an energy sword he quickly slaughtered any opponents unlucky enough to come near him for the duration of the match before they even knew they were in danger. Achievement after achievement was unlocked on Axel’s profile, and this only further infuriated Demyx as he ended up ranked behind Roxas for the large majority of their games. He was a good sport about it, and playing with him was much more enjoyable and comfortable than Roxas could have imagined, although that may have been in large part due to how ridiculously high he was. 

“Ohmygaia DEM he’s right behind you!” a girl shrieked as Roxas leapt off a platform and mowed down Demyx’s character before he even had a chance to turn around. Roxas barely registered the sound of the front door opening and closing yet again over Demyx’s indignant shout and the game’s announcement of his ‘Killing Spree.’ Roxas laughed out loud as several onlookers cheered and others murmured reassuringly to Demyx as he respawned and went in search of his friend. 

“Come out, you little shit. You can’t keep that fucking sword forever!” 

“Watch me,” Roxas retorted, double-killing two other players who were too busy fighting each other to see him descend upon them. Demyx threw a grenade and took out someone else, but the detonation’s flash appeared on Roxas’ half of the screen as well. 

“I swear to Gaia, if you’re fucking behind me right now,” Demyx snarled, but the rest of his threat turned into a howl of frustration as Roxas lunged at him, slashing him down despite the few rounds Demyx unloaded at him. 

“Who the fuck do you think you are, sitting in my chair playing my gamer tag with my cat in your lap and making my roommate look like a bitch?” a new voice said loudly, causing Roxas to jump about a foot in the air and whip his head around to find the source. Once he did, however, he froze, and the sounds of another player ending his kill streak and the room’s collective surprise didn’t even register to him. The voice belonged to a tall, thin male who had pinned Roxas with a glare from his shockingly bright green eyes. He had long, thick, red hair spiked back from his face in a halo that extended past his shoulders. The face in question was thin, angular, and accentuated by small, narrow, purple inverted teardrop tattoos under his eyes. He had his hands on his slim hips, stance akimbo, looking both casual and intimidating at once. He was absolutely, painfully, breathtakingly gorgeous. As seconds ticked by, something about Roxas’ expression lit a spark in the newcomers eyes and his scowl shifted, a smirk rising to take its place. A world away, the match came to an end behind them, and Demyx’s wail broke the moment. 

“Axe, your sister’s Gaia-damned roommate just absolutely thrashed me and like a million people online. This is Roxas. Dude here,” he grumbled, throwing his controller with more force than necessary at his friend’s face; to Axel’s credit, he caught it midair with a lithe grace Roxas wasn’t expecting from his lanky frame, especially since he still hadn’t looked away from Roxas. “Avenge me. And get me some fucking achievements. He’s unlocked like everything for you.” Demyx sat back, crossing his arms over his chest and mock-pouting while his couch mate gently patted his shoulder and pushed the bong into his hands. 

“Oh, really now?” Axel all but purred, arching a slim eyebrow up as his grin grew predatory. He flowed easily around the coffee table, and then one more step put him right in front of Roxas’ seat. “Hey, Blondie,” he said in a smooth, sultry voice that had a faint hint of color rising on Roxas’ cheeks. “Thanks for the gamerscore boost, but I never learned to share. I’ll take back what’s mine now.” His expectant look thawed Roxas’ locked muscles, but barely. 

“This?” Roxas’ voice came out as a squeak, drawing a laugh from a girl nearby, as he held up the controller linked to the red-haired male’s profile. Axel’s smirk grew, taking his controller and replacing it with Demyx’s. 

“Bingo. The name’s Axel, got it memorized?” he taunted, leaning down until he was just inches from Roxas’ face, which was verging on the same color as his hair. “Oh, and one more thing,” he trailed off, then scooped up the cat, who had been lounging there, forgotten along with everything else in the world when Roxas saw the man. However, when Axel’s fingertips ghosted over his thigh during the action, Roxas was immediately slammed back into reality as a jolt of SOMETHING in his gut made the feeling electric. It was like Axel’s fingertips were on fire, leaving a trail of smoldering embers in their wake, and it didn’t help that Axel saw his reaction written all over his face. Eyes practically shining with the same electric current gave him a look that he knew he would be thinking about later, but Demyx chose that moment to save him. 

“Don’t be an asshole, Axe, I want him to come back again sometime!” Demyx smacked the back of Axel’s head with a pillow from the couch, then held the bong out to him once the redhead had straightened up with a laugh. 

“Oh, fine. I’m not gonna go easy on you, though,” he threw back at Roxas, stalking back around the coffee table and then fluidly sinking onto the couch on the other side of their pink-haired friend. As he got himself and the cat settled, Roxas finally tore his eyes off Axel, trying desperately to get himself in control. This was absolutely insane. Roxas had never been the sort to turn into an idiot over an attractive person. Sure, he’d dated; a few girls when he was much younger and not sure of himself, a few guys as he was learning what he was looking for in a partner. Never, not once in his life, had he ever been so blown away after meeting someone, though. It was like every fiber of his being was pulling Roxas towards the other. He couldn’t keep his eyes from flicking back to keep some sort of connection. He was still on fire from just the thought of Axel’s touch. He watched him accept the bong and take a hit, saw muscles in his shoulders and back moving under his slim-fitting shirt, watched his narrow chest expanding, and as a thick cloud of smoke finally billowed from between his tantalizing lips, Roxas realized that he was making himself look like an idiot. He mentally shook himself, and returned his eyes to the TV. Clicking back through the lobby, he started up a match and watched the random online players being locked into their group while fighting the urge to glance over at the couch again. The bong reached Roxas in rotation and he hurried to take his hit but mistimed it; the countdown beeped to announce the round had started while he was still sparking the bowl, so he thrust it towards Demyx quickly and hastened to grab his controller. His opponent took the delay and ability to see Roxas’ spawn location to his advantage, however, and by the time Roxas had his controller in both hands and was trying to orient himself, Axel’s character was standing within his screen, taking him down with a headshot. 

“My show now, Halo master!” Axel crowed from his seat, on-screen running off to find more opponents. Roxas button mashed while waiting for his respawn, and then took off into the fray. Axel was a much stronger opponent than Demyx had been. Roxas realized quickly that all of the achievements he had previously unlocked were for energy sword kills and multiple kills within seconds of each other, simply because that was the opposite of how Axel played. He was a ghostly assassin; choosing the sniper rifle most commonly and taking out opponents from across the field, yet always seeming to have disappeared by the time someone came looking for his position. He won the first two matches before Roxas’ competitive nature was finally able to overcome the uncomfortable emotions that had still been nagging at his mind and tugging his eyes back to Axel’s form as often as possible, and after that the game turned into something else entirely. 

Behind them, the number of watchers grew. Even people who would have probably just been passing through stayed, entranced by the battle before them. The sounds of everyone chattering quietly around them was lost to the two players, however. Roxas was sitting on the floor several feet closer to the TV than his previous seat; he had fallen forward onto his knees after a particularly brutal kill and rather than rising, he had begun inching closer to the display. In contrast, Axel was standing upright on the couch, legs spread, jumping and roaring obscenities at the screen on occasion. The poor guy with the pink hair had taken refuge in Roxas’ vacated seat to avoid being stomped on. One of the onlookers had flipped the lights off at some point; the glow of the TV was providing the majority of light to the room now. 

“I’ll wipe you all out!” Axel roared, unleashing a stream of fire into a group of opponents including Roxas, who were all incinerated upon contact. 

“No!” Roxas shrieked. “You can’t stop me!” Whenever the Construct map came up, Axel went straight for the flamethrower and let nothing get in his way; once he had it, he was unstoppable, and many players they were matched with would actually spend the rest of the game trying to avoid him rather than give him more kills once they realized this fact. Roxas wouldn’t give in, however, rampaging through the fleeing players on his way to die at Axel’s hand over and over again. 

“Guess you’re not the master you thought you were,” Axel taunted, leaping down to a lower level and unleashing his inferno on a pair of players locked together in combat. Roxas snarled, hearing the countdown to the end of the match begin to beep. Once Axel had started playing, Roxas had only been winning about every other game, but if he lost this round, it would be his third loss in a row; a streak neither of them had achieved over the other so far. Several of the surrounding people began to count down with the numbers on the screen. ‘No, no, no!’ Roxas thought, getting one more long range kill. He didn’t think it was enough. He was close, so close, but was it enough? 

“Three!” 

“Two!” 

“One!” 

“WHOO!” Axel let lose as the ending beep sounded. As the kills appeared on screen, everyone cheered. Everyone, that is, except for - “NOOO!” Axel howled, leaping up and down on the couch as the score showed Roxas had just barely edged him out for first place in kills. “No! Not on my level! Are you fucking kidding me, nooo...who ARE you?” He snarled, turning a glare onto Roxas that probably would have made him shrink back in fear had it not been for the handful of people clapping him on the back and congratulating him. It took him a second to find his voice, but when he did, he threw back a retort he knew would get the redhead going. 

“The name’s Roxas, got it memorized?” he said sweetly in an imitation of the other’s previous introduction. With that, Axel’s eyes narrowed and for a split second Roxas thought he was about to leap across the coffee table at him, but instead he blinked the expression off his face and broke out into a slow, warm laugh. 

“Nice one, Roxas,” he finally said, stepping down from the couch and neatly snatching the bong from Demyx’s hands. 

“Hey!” his friend objected, grabbing it back before Axel had a chance to spark the bowl. “Greens for the victor.” He grinned hugely at Roxas as the handed the piece to him instead. “Not bad, Roxas! Dude, that got so intense!” Roxas laughed, flicking the lighter to life and a smug smile towards Axel at the same time. The redhead was looking at him oddly, in a way that made Roxas’ stomach lurch. As people began to move, many saying a goodbye to Demyx and heading for the door, Roxas lost eye contact as Axel disappeared amongst them. He let out a slow breath of air and, looking around, found himself looking into the returned stare of the housemates’ pink-haired friend. A small, somewhat disinterested smile quirked his lips. 

“Roxas, was it? I never properly introduced myself. I am Marluxia,” he drawled slowly and evenly. He held out a hand expectantly and it took Roxas a second to realize he was still holding the bong. 

“Oh, here,” he said, thrusting the bong at Marluxia. The man took it, touching the flame to the bowl and taking a deep hit. He exhaled, and when the smoke cleared Roxas saw that he was being stared at again. Shifting uncomfortably on his feet, he searched for Demyx, but when his gaze fell on him, he saw the other blonde busy doling out his product quickly to a group surrounding him, obviously trying to get some of the lingering customers out his door. Roxas wasn’t exactly sure if that should include him or not; he did technically only come over in the first place to pick up some weed. What if Demyx has just been being polite and it was Roxas making himself comfortable that had drawn this out into an all-day event? His now anxiety-ridden expression fell back onto Marluxia, who frowned and opened his mouth to speak again but was interrupted by a figure coming up behind Roxas. 

“I don’t know about you, but I sure as hell could use a beer after that,” Axel huffed, pulling one out of a cardboard container and pushing it into Roxas’ hands as he walked past. Another went to Marluxia, who nodded in silent thanks, and a third was opened and set in front of Demyx’s space on the table. Axel continued around the room and it seemed like receiving a bottle was the same as getting an ‘ok’ to stay now that the game had stopped; he handed one to a broad-chested blonde man with multiple piercings in his ears and neatly trimmed facial hair but skipped over the girl he was chatting up, making her pout and comment to the man who only shrugged and gestured for her to depart in response. A girl did receive one next, however; a thin blonde laying sideways across another armchair with her arm thrown over her face took her beer from Axel without otherwise moving but spoke at him instead. 

“I should tell you that I am in an EXTREMELY foul mood. Thanks to you, all our plans are ruined!” Her voice was sharp, high-pitched, and grating. Axel moved on without comment, handing another beer to each of a pair of guys in the corner wearing faded rugby jerseys. They were both large, heavily muscled, and intimidating, one with long black dread-like braids and the other with his auburn hair slicked back neatly into crazy peaks behind his head. 

“Xaldin. Lexaeus.” Axel greeted them without pausing his circuit of the room. Both raised their bottles at him in a salute. The last one who had a bottle thrust at him before Axel reclaimed his place on the couch with a beer of his own was a guy with long, straight blue hair pushed back away from his face. He had thin scars making an ‘x’ across the bridge of his nose, making Roxas wonder for an instant how he had gotten them. The expression on the man’s face as he caught Roxas staring was enough to peel the bark from a tree, so Roxas let his eyes quickly follow Axel’s path and landed on Demyx instead, who was hustling the last few people out. Once he had ushered them through the doorway, he turned back around to face the group. 

“How did you ruin all the plans?” Demyx shot at Axel, walking back to his spot and collapsing there as if he were exhausted. He grabbed his beer, made a sort of cheers at his roommate, then threw it back and chugged it down quickly. 

“We were gonna come get you and Marly and drive up to Oogie’s, but little miss bitchface over there,” he said pointedly, sticking his tongue out at the blonde woman who bared ever-so-slightly pointed teeth at him in an answering smile, “has an early morning class tomorrow that she doesn’t wanna miss. If we left now, though, we’d only get to stay for like an hour, if that.” Roxas found himself edging towards the nearest wall; any seat not shared with a relative stranger was taken, Roxas didn’t have the courage to sit next to someone he hadn’t even been introduced to, but he wanted to make his standing less awkward. Demyx nodded in reply to Axel’s words. 

“Yeah, sorry Larxene, we would have had to have left a looong time ago, and even then I woulda had to pass...I have class tonight,” Demyx said, finishing his thought and starting his hit in the same breath. Axel smirked, weaving his fingers together behind his head as he looked at his friend like a cat with a bird under its paw. That look...how much time had they spent playing Halo today? Demyx seemed to have followed Roxas’s train of thought. He let out a strangled gasp and then he choked and coughed the rest of his hit out. 

“Wait what time is it?!” he yelled breathlessly, jumping up and dashing towards the doorway to the kitchen. As Roxas pulled out his phone to check the time himself, he saw Axel’s grin grow into a Cheshire Cat smile before his eyes fell upon - “It’s fucking EIGHT FORTY FIVE?!” Demyx shrieked, dashing back and forth without a clear idea as to what he was doing. “None of you assholes cared to mention...you all knew...” With every burst of speech, Demyx slowed his motions until finally he stopped, threw up his hands, and slunk back to his seat with a final, “Fuck it. Fuck you guys.” Everyone else in the room let out a brief wave of laughter at that; even Roxas found himself chuckling at the blonde’s grumpy pout. 

“Dem, don’t be like that. We do this to you every semester. Although I wasn’t betting on this little one aiding in our plan, no matter how unwitting. How lucky were we?” the blonde with the piercings spoke in a soothing tenor voice with a hint of an accent and a load of charm, looking at Roxas, who was now standing off to the side of his seat. He felt a blush start to creep up on his cheeks, which only deepened as Axel locked his eyes into a burning gaze and spoke. 

“Yeah, my sister’s been holding out on me. I’m gonna have to talk to her about that.” Oh, Roxas would be having a conversation of his own with Kairi as soon as he got home. Demyx threw a light punch into his roommate’s shoulder. 

“Behave!” Demyx almost snarled, but passed the bowl to Axel anyways. “So what are we gonna do instead?” 

“Well, I know what I’M gonna do,” the girl said suddenly, jumping up and sashaying towards the two burly men. “You two are gonna take me down to that bar, Leon’s, and buy me a bunch of drinks. Then we’re gonna hustle some people at pool. I’ll use my best ‘I’m a weak, defenseless girl’ face until they’ve got their money on the table. Luxord, you in?” The pierced blonde stood hastily, waved a polite goodbye to Roxas, and then followed the other three into the kitchen. “See ya, losers!” Larxene’s voice floated back at them before they heard the front door click shut. Roxas was torn; he had been having a blast all day and didn’t really want to leave, but now would be the perfect opportunity to head out without things being awkward and he was pretty sure that if he was really given the chance to have a conversation with the hot redhead, things would definitely get awkward. His phone made the decision for him as it began ringing in his hands. He blindly swiped to accept the call and answered. 

“Hello?” The returning voice was exuberant and easily heard around the now-quiet room. 

“Roxas! We’ve been planning a beer and pizza night with you all day but SORA forgot to text you and I figured we’d just ask you when you got home this afternoon but I guess we missed you and you’re still not home and well...can we all have a roommate date?” Kairi pleaded loudly, mostly blocking out Sora yelling something about spacing out and being sorry. Before Roxas could get a word out, or even fully make up his mind, Axel leaned forward and held his hand out expectantly for the phone. 

“Uh, yeah sure. Hey, your brother wants to talk to you,” he mumbled, and then handed his phone over. 

“Kiddo. Breakfast tomorrow?” Kairi’s response made him chuckle, and he interjected, “My treat. You know what that means. Mmhmm.” His eyes drifted their way to Roxas again, and then appraised him from head to toe, drawing another bright blush. “Ask him yourself, sweetheart,” Axel cooed, then burst out into laughter as he gave the phone back. Roxas put it back to his ear in time to hear Kairi shout that the pizza had just gotten there and that she would see him soon, and the line disconnected. He rolled his eyes, pocketing his phone, and looked to Demyx. 

“Looks like that’s my cue. Hey man can I still buy a bit from you?” Demyx widened his eyes, then laughed out loud. 

“Wow, today HAS been long, I totally forgot about that.” He reached into the box he kept everything in and pulled out a baggie already holding a measured amount inside. “Take this one for now, call it your prize for winning that little impromptu tournament. You can buy the next bag.” He stood up and as he passed the weed to Roxas, he clasped his hand around Roxas’ and used it to pull his friend towards him and into a one-armed bro hug. “It was awesome to hang out, my man. See you in class tomorrow!” Marluxia inclined his head in a nod goodbye, and Saix rolled his eyes as he gave a halfhearted wave, but Axel rose, stretching hugely before strolling casually towards Roxas. 

“I’ll walk you out while you chug that,” Axel said, and clinked his bottle solidly over the top of Roxas’s. The pressure caused foam to come gushing out, leaving Roxas no choice but to start gulping it down to prevent it from ending up all over their floor. 

“You asshole,” Demyx giggled while Axel meandered into the kitchen shaking with suppressed laughter. Roxas frowned as he followed the redhead through the doorway, setting his now-empty bottle down on their kitchen island as he passed it quickly trying to catch up with the rangy man. This led to him running in to Axel, who had paused in the hallway right where the light’s reach ended and shadows began. 

“Oh shit, sor-“ Roxas began reflexively, stepping back, but a slender hand encircling his wrist made him freeze mid-apology. Axel’s expression was searching for a split second, then he turned abruptly, tugging Roxas along behind him as he quickly drew the blonde towards the front door. Once he had made it to the covered porch and Roxas was halfway out the door as well, Axel let go of Roxas’ wrist and crossed his arms over his chest. A million thoughts were flying through Roxas’ mind and along with them were a million different sparks of emotion; could Axel tell Roxas thought he was incredibly attractive? Would he care? Would it repulse him? Was he pissed? Why did- 

“You can’t just come into my house, take my spot and my controller and my CAT, play my game on my BEST LEVEL, and then just destroy both my roommate and myself,” Axel began, looking down his nose archly at the smaller man. “My pride absolutely cannot take it. I demand some sort of compensation for the fuckery you pulled back there, to soothe my wounded ego.” He ended this with a stern scowl and his hands uncrossing to land on his hips again, but his eyes were sparkling with mischief and something else that created an almost tangible tension in the air. 

Roxas began to sweat, licking instantly dry lips before stuttering out, “Wh-What did you have in mind, exactly?” It could have sounded smooth, had he not been tripping over his words. Or looking up into eyes that were setting something inside him on fire. The redhead shifted again, striking a pose that said he was considering an appropriate ‘compensation’ for the grievance. The longer Axel pretended to think, the more thoughts welled up, and the more flashes of hope Roxas shattered himself before they could form into something real. Seeming to read his mind, or maybe just the expressions flashing across his face, Axel’s thoughtful frown slowly grew into a sultry smirk, and his eyes were absolutely molten as they caught Roxas’ and held them. 

“What do I want? Hmm.” He took a step closer, two, and was suddenly so close that Roxas involuntarily took one back to create some room and brought his back flush to one of the posts supporting the roof. Axel closed that distance, too, and looked down at Roxas, their height disparity extremely evident as Axel towered over him. “I want you,” Axel breathed, then leaned down until his nose was just inches from Roxas’ own. “To give me,” he shifted another inch forward, and Roxas could feel warm breath on his face. Eyes frozen wide, Roxas couldn’t move, couldn’t say anything, couldn’t even BLINK, when Axel’s face was suddenly replaced with a phone screen as the man disappeared back to a relatively normal distance away with a bark of laughter and finished with, “your number. We’re having a rematch. I’m picking the game this time. I’ll text you to work out the details.” 

An almost painful tension and all the breath Roxas had unwittingly been holding wooshed out of him at once, and he felt like a deflated balloon. He wanted to close the distance again. He wanted to die on the spot. He didn’t know what he wanted. The man was taunting him. Oh Gaia, it was supposed to be a lighthearted joke, maybe a little intimidating, but not a train wreck that left his thoughts and emotions in shambles like it had. He probably looked like an idiot right now; he sure felt like one. Axel was still holding out his phone; Roxas quickly snatched it out of his long, thin fingers and began punching in his number a little more aggressively than he probably should have been. His embarrassment and frustration, seasoned with a twinge of hurt and rejection, were turning to cool anger, and Roxas welcomed it; at least his head was clearer and he was more able to think on his feet. Saving his contact into the phone, he held it out disinterestedly. 

“Of course,” he said offhandedly, “Whatever you want. Whenever you want me.” He paused, trying to see if he was earning a reaction like he was trying to, but Axel’s face had frozen into a blank, unreadable expression. He shrugged, still continuing in a polite yet disinterested tone, “I’ll fuck you up no matter what you choose.” He sniffed delicately and slipped off the porch, beginning his walk home at a quick pace. He refused to let himself look back to see Axel’s reaction; no matter what it was, he was sure to find out if he received a text, and if he didn’t, that was an answer, too. He did allow a huge grin to spread across his face once he was a safe distance away, however; it twisted with determination once he neared home. It was time to talk to another redhead and find out what she would tell him about her brother.


	3. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick note on chapter length; it is entirely dependent on the character and what’s happening in the story.  
> There are no real guidelines lol.

They were drunk. They were beyond drunk; all three of them were wasted to the point that it was clear no one would remember this part of the evening clearly the next day. What started out as video games, pizza, and beer had progressed to drinking games and their stash of hard liquor once Roxas realized that the usually verbose Kairi became suddenly tight-lipped once her brother was involved. They were wrapping up a game that involved a deck of cards and intricate rules as to what each card meant. Kairi was laying draped across Sora’s lap, giggling as she tried to take a drink without sitting up and spilling a good amount onto herself, the couch, and Sora’s leg. Sora, to his credit, didn’t even flinch as he was soaked; he was absently playing with the tips of Kairi’s hair and watching everything with a fuzzy smile on his face. Roxas knew the brunette was minutes away from passing out, and the time to make his play had come. 

“Truth or dare, Kai,” he said pointedly, and the girl sat up with a gasp and a wide, excited grin. Sora, upon the girl’s departure from his lap, let his head drop back onto the back of the couch and shut his eyes. Roxas smirked. 

“Dare!” Kairi trilled, leaning forward with her elbows on her knees and her chin resting on her hands. Roxas started off easy to draw her in. 

“I dare you to chug the rest of your drink,” he drawled, swirling his own around in the glass in his hand before taking a sip. 

“Too easy,” she retorted, throwing back her head and downing the rest of her concoction. “Truth or dare.” 

“Truth,” Roxas returned, sitting back smugly. He would start the real interrogation with her next turn, and there were so many things he wanted to ask- 

“Why is my brother dragging me out to breakfast in the morning?” Kairi asked too sweetly, beating him to the punch. He stammered, thrown off-guard. 

“I uh, what?” he floundered, “How should I know?” It was her turn to smirk at him, sitting back with her hands behind her head. 

“He asked me from YOUR phone,” she pointed out, and he was lost for words for a second. 

“Well...it might have to do with me being over there today. I kinda kicked everyone’s ass at Halo,” he hedged, looking down at his hands. Reflexively, he reached for his weed, sparking up the bowl while Kairi giggled. 

“You didn’t! I’m gonna get an earful, he’s such an awful loser,” she laughed, leaning forward again to take the bowl from Roxas. “Okay, your turn. I pick truth, too.” 

“Is your brother...seeing anyone?” Roxas’ attempt at nonchalance failed miserably; Kairi’s expression both softened and became more serious. 

“Oh honey, he may whine about being lonely, but he isn’t looking for anything. Getting him laid won’t make him any less of an asshole,” she said kindly with a smile. “I’m sure they liked you, though! They wouldn’t have let you stay so long otherwise.” Roxas wanted to bang his head against the table in front of him. Was it more blessing or curse that she thought his motives were based on an eagerness to fit in? Roxas took his pipe back from her for another hit, using the time to try to gather his thoughts and regroup through the drunken haze he was in. 

“So that’s a no, right? That makes it your turn,” he said a little desperately, having been unable to come up with anything better. “I’ll take dare.” 

“Ooh, risky, Rox. A dare,” Kairi mused, tapping a finger against her lips in thought for a second before jumping to her feet excitedly. “I know! I dare you to line us up a few rounds of shots, and then we’ll finish the game by taking a shot after every answer. I’ve gotta crash soon if I’m gonna go out in the morning.” Roxas nodded, but frowned as he made his way towards the kitchen. That meant his chances to get something concrete from her had just diminished drastically. He did it, however, setting them up three shots each. Kairi has followed him into their kitchen, and hopped up to sit on the counter while he finished pouring. When he was done, he put the tequila back in the fridge, picked up the first of hit shots, then tapped it down onto the counter before throwing it back. It burned his nose, making him cough, and then he squinted at his red headed roommate. 

“Tell me something about Axel,” he said. She gave him a quizzical look. 

“I didn’t choose truth or dare yet,” she said slowly, but Roxas shook his head. 

“It wasn’t technically a question; it would work for either,” he reasoned, and then set his face in a stern look. Kairi sighed, blew a stray strand of hair out of her face, and then couldn’t seem to come up with a reason to not answer, so she reluctantly did. 

“Axel...he’s...hmm. He likes- or well...” she spoke as she thought, until her expression settled and she snapped her fingers. “Got it. He’s been arrested, technically has a record even though the other guys dropped charges when they’d all sobered up. He beat the absolute shit out of three guys behind a bar. Wouldn’t ever explain what happened.” While Roxas took in her answer, she picked up a shot for herself and downed it, shuddering delicately. “Truth or dare?” 

“Truth.” Roxas’ voice was tense, strained. He was walking a narrow line between keeping her in the dark and getting informed that he desperately craved, and at any moment she could flip the tables on him and see through his charade. 

“Describe your ideal girl,” she commanded, looking at him thoughtfully. Roxas snorted, but answered. 

“Funny, I guess. Smart. Nice. Wouldn’t be let down when nothing happened. Patient. Nerdy. I dunno.” He took his shot quickly, missing the look on her face slip from puzzled to calculating. “Truth.” 

“What is he majoring in?” Roxas inquired, and neither of them really noticed or acknowledged that Axel’s name didn’t even need to be said. 

“Studio Art. Specializing in new media art. All the pieces on their living room wall are his,” Kairi answered simply, now sure of the conclusion she had just drawn. She took her shot, set the small glass back on the counter upside down, then crossed her arms across her chest. “Tell me about your fascination with my brother.” Roxas’ eyes bugged; he coughed in attempt to hide his shock at being called out. 

“I uh, didn’t choose truth?” he squeaked, looking around as if he would find an answer or an escape in the surrounding kitchen. Kairi just shook her head, eyes sparkling. 

“Nuh-unh. I didn’t word it as a question so it works for either, remember?” The amusement in her voice was heavy, and Roxas struggled to come up with something to say. He couldn’t think straight. The room seemed to be tilting at crazy angles all around him. 

“Kai, I- it’s not...it’s just that-“


	4. Chapter Four

Kairi walked in to the breakfast-oriented diner that she and Axel met at to eat often. They didn’t even need to say where they would meet anymore when they made plans; they always came here, because it was open twenty-four seven and they could catch up over any meal at any time. Axel wasn’t a morning person, so she knew whatever he wanted to talk to her about was important to him, but at this moment she couldn’t think of anything that could be more important than the agony she was currently suffering. The bright morning sun lanced through the large, dark sunglasses she was wearing and right into her brain sharply. The dash from the shaded car to the building’s interior had felt like a thousand miles, and every step made her head pound sickeningly. Looking around, she spotted Axel’s flaming head of hair across a partition and brushed past the hostess stand without waiting to be led over. She slid into the seat across from him without a word, burying her head on her arms which she had crossed on the tabletop. 

“Mother of Gaia, you look like shit, princess,” Axel began, only stopping his words after she shot him a look of death through the sunglasses she had decided she would never remove again. Axel coughed politely, then innocently asked in a tone sweeter than honey, “Whatever did you guys do on your roommate date, oh sister of mine?” Kairi groaned at the memories floating painfully through her head. 

“Just a warning for you, Axel, I ended my night taking a bunch of shots of tequila at three in the morning. I want to die. I am only here because my fondness for you as a sibling forced me to keep our plans. Sora is still drunk. Roxas may be dead.” She sighed, rubbing aching temples, and looked up at Axel from over the top of her shades. Axel’s face had formed a somewhat surprised expression, which froze when she mentioned the blonde. She scowled, guessing why her brother had forced her from their nice, dark apartment and into the harshly illuminated real world. “Let’s just get to it,” she huffed, propping her head up with one arm. Axel schooled his features into an unreadable expression. 

“What do you mean?” he asked, sipping from his coffee cup delicately. When he set it back down, Kairi sighed, pulled it towards her, and stole a deep drink of the warm, dark liquid. 

“Don’t play with me here, Axe. Tell me why I’m having breakfast with you. I refuse to fight to get you to come out and say it.” She let her tone of voice convey that she might know already, and after holding out for a few seconds, Axel slumped forward, crossing his own arms with his elbows supporting his weight on the table. 

“Why were you keeping him from me?” he pouted, acting deeply wounded that she had. Kairi rolled her eyes and immediately regretted it. 

“You idiot,” she snarled, but was interrupted by the arrival of their waitress, a heavyset woman who was probably in her late forties and had a face framed with wrinkles from frequent smiles. 

“Good morning, sweethearts. Coffee for you, too, dear?” she inquired of Kairi, who nodded slowly. 

“Yes please, and can I get a hamburger and a side order of bacon?” The woman jotted in a small notepad, then turned to Axel. “For you, honey?” 

Her warm question was met with a quick, “nope,” from Axel, and she bustled away again. 

“You idiot,” Kairi repeated in a somewhat softer tone. “You don’t have the best track record in the world, Axel. Even if I DID think he might be your type, I wouldn’t have set y’all up...he’s my roommate, man. I’ve gotta live with him a LOT longer than you usually keep your interest in someone. Besides, I didn’t even know he was gay until last night. I still technically don’t!” she added hurriedly at the expression she saw forming on her brother’s face. “He hasn’t come out to us! At least not to me,” amended Kairi, now adding asking Sora about that to her list of things to do. She had seen his thoughts playing out on his face; first chagrin, then indignation, argumentative, but it was the cat-in-the-cream-smile that had begun to spread widely that she was trying to prevent from gaining any more traction. “NO, Axel. Unless you’re going to tell me that you’re signing up for a commitment longer than the lease, I will not help you with this. Not cool,” she finished desperately, because a faraway look had filled Axel’s bright green eyes and was not fading. Their waitress returned, dropping off a huge plate of greasy goodness and a coffee cup in front of Kairi and then filling both of their cups and bustling off again. “Axel,” and when that got no response, more firmly, “Axel!” When his eyes finally focused on her again, the snarl was back in her voice. “Are you listening to me?” 

“Between the lines,” was his cryptic reply. “I’m not really sure what I want. You have helped me, though.” He quirked his head to the side, and then before she had a chance to speak around her mouthful of hangover food, he fired off, “What did he say last night?” 

“Mmm-mm!” Kairi swallowed quickly. “I will not break my roommate’s trust and reveal words I’m sure he won’t even remember today. And unless I give you the green light, I FORBID you to so much as look at him with anything other than the polite disinterest an older brother would have for his little sister’s boyfriend’s roommate. I’m SERIOUS. We can’t afford that place on our own.” Axel ignored the visual daggers the younger girl was throwing at him and instead pulled out his phone, scrolling through it. 

“I’d never let you and Sora be homeless, Kai,” he mused distractedly, frowning at his phone and scrolling more rapidly. Just as she was about to make a comment on the rudeness of pulling out his cellphone to do literally nothing on it, Kairi was thrown off by a sharp bark of laughter from her brother that quickly turned into a warm, rich sound. 

“Ah, sweetheart,” he said, wiping at his eyes when his laughter had died down, “you better give me the green light soon, I’m not gonna be able to help myself after much of this.” Axel spun his phone around on the table so it was oriented in her direction and pushed it towards her. On the screen was a contact with a vaguely familiar number, named - 

“GLaDOS?” she read aloud, and then paused, frowning. “I don’t get it.” 

“It stands for Genetic Lifeform and Disk Operating System, it’s the name of the computer in Portal that challenges and taunts you through the whole game and offers you cake and...nevermind, the important thing is that it’s clever and funny, and how Blondie saved his number in my phone,” Axel finished hurriedly, reaching into his pocket and then tossing its contents onto the table. “Thanks for letting me buy you breakfast, Kai. Text me,” he said, sliding out of his seat and disappearing quickly. She shook her head at his abrupt departure but continued to wolf down her food; just because her brother had skipped out, didn’t mean she was going to let her grease-laden monstrosity of a hangover cure go to waste. As she idly picked through the munny he had left behind to make sure there was enough to cover the bill, she noticed a folded-up piece of paper amongst it. She tugged it free, unfolded it, and gasped. It was a ripped-out sketchbook page with a photo-realistic pencil portrait of Roxas on it. She let her fingertips trace the delicate lines, musing that he had obviously done it from memory alone and marveling at how perfectly he had memorized every detail of her friend’s face. She let out a tortured sigh, then pulled out her own phone. Shoving the last of the bacon into her mouth, she sent the brief message, pocketed the sketch, and made her own departure with a nod to their waitress on the way out. 

Friday 8:27 A.M. 

Kairi: green light, you asshole


	5. Chapter Five

Roxas woke up suddenly, his panic the first thing he felt as he looked around, realizing he had no idea where he was or when it was, but it was instantly overshadowed by an intense, blinding pain from his head. 

“Oh Gaia,” he moaned, laying back down where he was on the floor. The sound of the front door slamming shut behind someone made him aware that their arrival must have woken him, but also caused another spike of pain through his abused head. Feet came into view, but he couldn’t lift his head to see whose they were. “Just let me die here,” he moaned pathetically, attempting to cover his face with his arm. 

“Roxas, you lazy bum! Glad you’re alive,” Kairi said in a chipper voice that had him considering strangling her. The last thing he remembered was taking shots with her in the kitchen while they played truth or- oh no. His brain suddenly kicked into overdrive as hazy memories flooded into his brain, the furthest of which being Kairi asking him about his interest in Axel, and he couldn’t remember how he answered her. Dear sweet, merciful mother of Gaia, what did he tell her? Thoughts didn’t stop there, and as he sat up, another more pressing thought popped into existence; he had a class to get to. 

“Fuck, what time is it?!” he would have shouted, but it came out as a horse croak as he tried to jump to his feet and fell heavily into the fridge. His eyes frantically darted around looking for the time and when they fell on the digital numbers on the microwave, a strangled noise escaped from him. It was eight forty-five. There was no way he could make it there before he was locked out. The gears in his brain started to turn slowly. No way, unless... “Kairi,” he began meekly, seeing her expression harden into exasperation. “I don’t have time to lead up to this and ask you properly, but could you do me a HUGE favor and I will owe you whatever you want, you name your fee, just please please please could you drive me up to class like right now?” he blurted everything out as quickly as possible, bouncing with anticipation as she rolled her eyes. 

“Fine,” she said dramatically, grabbing her keys while Roxas dashed out of the room to change shirts. Sprinting back, he scooped up his bag and dashed out the door behind Kairi, who had already started walking to the car. 

“Thank you thank you thank you,” he chanted, tugging on the handle until it unlocked and then throwing himself into the vehicle. As she backed out of the parking space and then sped off, Roxas felt his tension draining, leaving the sick, achy hangover to resurface in its place. 

“Sooo...how much of last night do you remember?” Kairi asked sweetly, flashing him a smile that was anything but. Roxas let out a low moan. 

“What did I say?” he muttered quietly, bracing himself as he peeked at his roommate out of the corner of his eyes. Her huge sunglasses didn’t help him to gauge her expression as she pursed her lips, seeming to consider what to tell him. 

“A lot,” she finally said, drawing another groan from Roxas. 

“Anything I should regret?” he delicately skirted the pressing questions with this more neutral one. She shook her head, but hesitated. 

“I have one question for you though,” she began, but had to quicken her words as they were about to turn onto campus. “You didn’t TECHNICALLY come out last night, but it was...strongly implied. Is that a real thing? Like, are you out, or is this a new thing that may just end up being a weird crush because Gaia knows I’ve had confusing crushes on the occasional girl, but I’m definitely all about what Sora’s got, equipment-wise, and-“ Roxas cut her off with a sharp laugh as they pulled up to the closest point she could drop him off at. He would have let her dig herself deeper, but he was late and he owed her a ton more than gratitude. 

“Kairi, I absolutely love you. I’m gay, have known for a long time, my whole family knows, I gotta run but am SUPER appreciative of the ride. Let me know when you figure out your owe-you-one, because I really, really do.” He was about to turn and dash away from the car when he heard an exasperated ‘wait’ that made him pause. She looked resigned as she held out a folded-up piece of paper to him. 

“Open it AFTER you make it into class, I’d hate to have gone to all this trouble for you to wind up late anyway. See you when you make it home, Rox.” Then Kairi pulled away from the curb, and Roxas turned and power walked over to the building. 

As he collapsed into the seat next to Demyx, Roxas knew he looked like he was falling apart. Now that the excitement and apprehension of his conversation with Kairi was fading from his mind, the hangover rose to the surface again sharply with the help of the fluorescent lights in the classroom. He literally woke up on the kitchen floor, changed shirts, and ran to class; he probably still smelled like liquor. Judging by the wrinkled nose and expression on Demyx’s face, he was probably right. 

“Dude...what HAPPENED to you? Is everything okay?” Demyx whispered hesitantly as the professor began calling for the class’s attention down front. 

“Other than waking up on the floor and a terrible hangover, I’m physically alright. I’m fine,” he insisted when the other male’s brows furrowed in concern. He looked down at the folded rectangle still in his hand; the paper was stiff, somewhat heavy, and obviously much nicer than the blank white sheet of printer paper he had initially taken it for. Curiosity peaked again, and he unfolded it onto the little tabletop that his seat provided for note taking, letting out a quiet gasp when he saw what was on the paper. 

The drawing was exquisite; so perfectly captured that Roxas registered the reflection as his own as easily as if he were looking at a photograph of himself. Thin, delicately sketched pencil lines wove together to show him looking up at the viewer, eyes locking together and expression hesitant. Gorgeous. Breathtaking. Stunning. Words flashed through Roxas’ mind and he just as quickly rejected each one, needing something better than his vocabulary was providing. There was no way that KAIRI was hiding a talent like this, was there? He’d never seen her doing anything even remotely artistic unless putting together the ‘perfect’ outfit counted. 

“Holy fucking shit,” Demyx breathed, having leaned over to see what Roxas had been staring at so intently. “Well, Gaiadamn, I guess you stuck out in his mind, huh.” Demyx leaned back, looking perplexed. Roxas was lost. 

“What?” he hissed, angling his direction toward Demyx slightly. “Kairi just gave this to me. Does she draw? I don’t even have words for how good this is.” Demyx had been shaking his head slowly since Roxas had started to speak. 

“Kairi doesn’t draw. She’s maybe the only person worse at drawing than I am. Axel does, though. They had breakfast before he went to work this morning. Oh Gaia, he probably has no idea you’ve seen this. This is great,” he wheezed, pitying expression morphing to one of sadistic glee as he pulled out his phone to snap a picture of Roxas, his confused expression, and the picture on the desk in front of him. Roxas couldn’t accept what Demyx was saying. Axel? No, Axel wouldn’t have had a picture of Roxas to use as reference, and he’d only been looking at Roxas directly for like, less than ten minutes total. Definitely not drawing. To have created something like this from MEMORY... 

Self-doubt warred with hope on Roxas’ face, turning his expression into a grimace as he thought about that. He could have easily just liked how the lighting had fallen in that moment. Or maybe it was something he did for everyone he met, and he wasn’t meant to have seen this. Well, obviously he wasn’t meant to see this, but still. Demyx sent off his text, still chuckling, and looked back over at Roxas, suddenly more serious. 

“The teasing I’m going to be giving him aside, don’t look too deeply into that. Axe is the greatest roommate of all time, and my best friend, but nothing keeps his interest for very long. Unless you’re into that sort of thing, I mean,” he looked appraisingly at Roxas, as if both asking and being too worried about offending him to ask at once. Roxas snorted; he hadn’t even brought up being gay with any of the people he had met on Destiny Island because it had seemed irrelevant since he had absolutely zero love life, and now he was having to come out to multiple people repeatedly. Maybe he should get a name tag announcing it to everyone. 

“Yes, I’m gay, Demyx, but also not one for casual flings,” he said gently. Then, trying to sound casual, “Is Axel gay, then?” Demyx rolled his eyes to the ceiling, as if he would find an answer there. 

“Axel’s...something else. He brings home guys most of the time, but I’ve seen him taking the occasional girl upstairs, so I’m not really sure. I don’t really ask him about it. Sometimes he brings a new person home every few nights, sometimes he sees people back to back, sometimes he goes for a while without bringing anyone there, but I’ve never seen him keep someone he’s hooking up with around longer than a week or two. He’s been on one of those ‘focusing on my art’ breaks for a while, though, so maybe this is just part of that. We don’t generally mention that kind of thing to each other unless we’re introducing someone who’s gonna be around a lot...and he has never introduced me to someone he’s brought home.” Looking back to Roxas, he rolled his eyes with a grin starting to form again. “On a side note, he’s not the only one you struck a chord with. The rest of the gang took to you pretty well, Marly even asked if you’d be around more than just as a client. I hope you don’t let Axel’s weirdness put you off from hanging out with us.” He made a face and Roxas laughed quietly. 

“Not at all. That’d be cool,” he said, and then felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. As he pulled it out, Demyx went on. 

“We’re getting together tonight at my place before we settle on what we’re doing. That’s kinda the usual. I’d invite you to just come chill again but dude, don’t take this the wrong way, but you look like you need a nap. And a shower. Do you have any night classes today? Wanna head over around five and destroy my gamer pride til everyone’s there?” Roxas nodded, frowning when he glanced down and saw a message from an unsaved number. “Sounds like a plan,” Demyx said, pulling out his phone after clearly receiving a message of his own. Roxas opened his up, giggling to himself as he read the message. 

Friday 9:42 A.M. 

214-898-1305: you know, things end pretty poorly for GLaDOS. 

214-898-1305: unless you’re just preparing for me to dismantle, destroy, and torch you in our rematch. 

You: cake and grief counseling will be available at the conclusion of the test. 

214-898-1305: omg you are too much, short stuff. Any chance you’d tell me your video game weak spot? 

You: Not a chance. 

You: Axel, are you...AFRAID of me? 

214-898-1305: GLaDOS was also a lot more helpful than you are. 

214-898-1305: would you tell me what kind you’re the best at, then? 

You: action RP games I suppose. Like mass effect, assassins creed, borderlands, that sort of thing 

You: I don’t see how that helps you any, though 

214-898-1305: it doesn’t 

214-898-1305: that one was just to get to know you a little better ;) 

Roxas set his phone down and leaned back, staring off into space. He needed to think before he said something stupid. Like now. Because his fingers were itching to flirt back with the hot redhead, and that would be stupid, right? If what Demyx and Kairi had said was accurate, at best he wanted to hook up a few times and at worst, he wasn’t interested at all and was just flirty by nature. Despite how ridiculously attractive and physically appealing he found the man, he didn’t have the emotional callousness to hook up with people he wasn’t emotionally invested in. No matter what his short-term impulses were shouting at him, he knew he wouldn’t be happy being another one of Axel’s no-introductions-necessary visitors. It wasn’t like Roxas was out there looking for someone, either. He just wanted to chill, maybe make some new friends, and grind his way through his classes. He didn’t want or need unnecessary drama in his life. So he definitely wasn’t interested in chasing after Axel just to wind up with them both regretting it. He also definitely didn’t want to lead him on with all the mixed signals his attraction was probably sending. So even harmless flirting should be off the table. He sighed, picking up his phone again. He did want to be friends, to get closer to the man in some way. He couldn’t help that. Maybe that’s what Axel was doing? 

Friday 10:06 A.M. 

You: oh yeah? Why would you want to do that? 

You: just so you know, knowing that my favorite color is red or that I write code won’t help you beat me, either. 

214-898-1305: actually, it does 

214-898-1305: if you play those RPGs I’m willing to bet you’re a completionist. You’ll do better than me at any game that has a decent plot that you have to invest a lot of time in. 

214-898-1305: if you code, you’re probably a lot smarter than me in puzzles and strategy-based games. I’ll skip on those, too. 

214-898-1305: and now I’ll be able to frost your I’m-sorry-you-lost consolation cake in your favorite color. So there. 

You: I’m...actually frightened by how well you just twisted what I thought were harmless, random facts against me :o 

You: I wouldn’t wanna get on your bad side, for sure 

214-898-1305: does that mean you’re gonna go easy on me? 

You: hmm... 

You: I mean I guess if you’re admitting that you can’t handle facing me at my full, unmitigated power... 

214-898-1305: omg fine! 

214-898-1305: no throwing the game. I wouldn’t honestly want to win against you unless it was for real, anyway. 

214-898-1305: Ok, I’ve got the perfect game. What are you doing after class? 

You: crashing. Demyx invited me over later, and I definitely need a shower and a nap before anyone else sees me 

214-898-1305: oh, well then I’ll see you either way. Depending on what we do, maybe there’ll be time tonight 

214-898-1305: and you look adorable 

214-898-1305: even if Demyx says you smell XD 

You: oh Gaia he sent you that picture. Brb I’m gonna go die now 

214-898-1305: no dying. You can’t get out of our rematch that easily. Besides, like I said, it’s adorable. 

You: yeahh I’m sure 

You: it’s hardly fair for you to have this leverage over me. We haven’t even partied together and you’ve already got a blackmail-worthy picture 

Roxas glanced over at Demyx, who was now sleeping with his head pillowed on his arms crossed over the desk. Roxas was deciding whether or not to strangle Demyx, having still not seen the picture, when his phone vibrated with an incoming message again. He toyed with the edge of Axel’s sketch still laying on the tabletop in front of him, then sighed and looked to see what Axel had sent. Instead of the expected text, however, it was a photo. Axel was squinting against the morning’s bright, clear sunlight, which must have been behind the camera. He was wearing a black tank top, which allowed the tattoo work covering his shoulders and upper biceps to show, and he was leaning up against what appeared to be a brick wall with a cigarette hanging from between his lips. Roxas was able to note, from somewhere far off in his head, that were his life an anime, he would have just started an epic nosebleed. He could see it was a casual, spur-of-the-moment sort of picture, lacking filtering and posing and multiple attempts, yet Axel was breathtaking, even disheveled and making a face. 

Friday 10:32 A.M. 

214-898-1305: there. unplanned picture for unplanned picture. Though the trade wasn’t instigated by you, and it seems like it worked out best for me, you can’t say we aren’t even 

214-898-1305: ;) 

You: you know, it’s not fair that I look like I just got mugged and you look like that 

Roxas bit his tongue, wondering if that was too far towards the ‘flirting and giving the wrong idea’ category, and Axel’s response said he definitely took it that way. 

Friday 10:36 A.M. 

214-898-1305: look like what, Roxy? 

214-898-1305: are you trying to tell me that my dragged-my-ass-out-of-bed look is doin it for you? ;D 

You: what? no, just saying that the comparison between dragged-my-ass-out-of-bed and literally-woke-up-on-the-floor-then-left-for-class is totally not the same 

You: also, don’t call me Roxy, wtf 

214-898-1305: well, Roxy, if you want another pic, I’m gonna need one first. Those are the rules. 

Roxas smirked to himself. If he was going to resist his craving to continue this line of thought, he was at least going to have a little fun doing so. He used his phone to quickly snap a picture, then sent it back to the redhead. The picture of his hand, middle finger to the recipient, was followed by a quick retort that would show he wasn’t really that mad. 

Friday 10:44 A.M. 

You: now shush. I’m gonna nap til this class lets out. I’ll see you at your place soon enough 

214-898-1305: haha. Fine, make me work for it. 

214-898-1305: but then, a deal’s a deal, I suppose 

Then after a brief pause, Axel sent another picture; one of his hand, as well. However, his long, thin fingers were all extended, and the palm of his hand was the picture’s focus. On it, he’d written ‘sleep well, Roxy’ in bold, black letters. Roxas didn’t want to identify the fluttery feeling the picture sent through him, so instead he put his phone back in his pocket with a smile and settled himself in for a quick snooze until the class was dismissed.


	6. Chapter Six

Once they’d been woken up by students around them trying to leave and managed to sign in on the sheet, Demyx and Roxas said their goodbyes; the former heading home and the latter heading towards the bus stop. Roxas put headphones in as he waited for the bus; his standard melancholy playlist was already queued up on his phone. He skipped the first few that loaded up, until finally settling on an old Panic! At The Disco song that he knew every word to, and immediately tuned the rest of the world out. He idly minimized the music player app on his phone and before his brain had a chance to object, he had clicked his way back into Axel’s text chain and onto the selfie he had been sent. It received much more scrutiny now that he wasn’t sitting with people close by on either side. Axel’s nose was scrunched up as he squinted from the sunlight, making the tattoos on his cheekbones take on a slight curve from the expression. His eyes were half-lidded against the brightness, but the twist of his lips and spark in his eye made them look more appealing than was safe, so Roxas skipped on, only to find himself looking at the tattoos capping both of the man’ shoulders. The not even half-sleeves were unnoticeable while Axel had been wearing a short sleeved shirt; from what Roxas could see in the picture, Axel’s fairly muscular shoulders had several images interwoven with swirling flames which ended in clean, neat lines across his bicep. They accentuated his musculature, and fragments peeked out of the lower neckline of the tank top, making Roxas question what the full work looked like. Catching himself and trying to shake that trail of thought as well, Roxas’ eyes moved on, but even the cigarette in between his lips was taking his mind places it shouldn’t be going. Out of the corner of his eye he saw his bus pull up, so he quickly locked his phone, threw it in his pocket, and joined the few other people standing around him who were crowding the bus’ doors to get on. He settled in a seat up front, and then leaned his head against the window next to him, staring out of it as the city began to drift by him, and attempted yet again to immerse himself in his music. 

‘...I try 

Not to hurt anybody I like 

But I don’t have the drugs to sort 

I don’t have the drugs to sort it out, sort it out 

I don’t have the drugs to sort 

I don’t have the drugs to sort it out, sort it out 

Your voice has stolen my soul, soul, soul 

Your voice has stolen my soul, soul, soul 

Your voice has stolen my so-‘ 

Roxas sighed, digging out his phone to skip the song that was hitting a little too close to home for him right now. The National’s somber, soulful singing abruptly stopped, but Roxas continued to skip songs. After his sixth or seventh skip, however, Roxas inwardly groaned and switched the entire playlist to his EDM set. There was much more safety in a list of songs that were more about the beat and less about the words. He was so focused on fixing his music, however, that when he looked up again and saw that the seat next to him was now occupied and that his neighbor was looking at him, he jumped and yanked his headphones out. 

“Oh, h-hey Aqua! Sorry I was just zoning out,” he managed, glad to have remembered the girl’s name, at least. Her kind eyes filled with laughter as she hid her grin poorly behind a hand. 

“Hey Roxas. How are you doing?” she laughed, but looked at him pointedly, which made Roxas feel slightly nervous. 

“I’m fine, how have you been?” Roxas squirmed as her stare grew penetrating. 

“Are you sure you’re okay?” she asked quietly, completely ignoring the question. “You...don’t look so good.” She wrinkled her nose delicately and Roxas remembered belatedly that he looked like he’d woken up in a ditch and smelled like a bar. 

“Oh, heh, yeah,” he began awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck in an embarrassed gesture. “My roommates and I all got super drunk last night, and I woke up too late to do anything but throw on a change of clothes before class. I’m on my way home to get fixed up now.” He felt like a child who had disappointed their parent; Aqua was looking at him with a mixture of concern and barely-disguised disapproval. She nodded though, recovering quickly, and then her smile was back in place. 

“That’s good. You’ve gotta take care of yourself! So how’re your classes going? All the first days go well?” Roxas nodded as he gave a positive reply, making a comment about the professor in his Art History class before continuing on. They chatted until the bus let them out at the stop for their apartment, and as they entered the complex and were about to head separate ways, Aqua finally got to her point. “So, I hold a kind of study hall at my place for several of my friends or classmates, really open to anyone. We’re all working on our own materials, but it’s a nice space for everyone to buckle down and really focus, and there’s usually a whole group of us to bounce ideas or questions off of. It’s any day, from one until seven in the evening, but you could really come any time. Or later in the semester when exams and finals are coming up. If you’d like, I’ll text you and give you all my info?” She ended in a higher pitch, making what was probably meant as a statement come out sounding like a question. Roxas nodded immediately, though. 

“Yeah, that sounds really cool! I don’t know when I’d come by, but I’ve gotta work on homework sometime, right?” he laughed at his own joke, and she joined in, passing him her phone. As he typed in his number, he continued speaking so as not to make the moment weird. “I booked most of my classes in the morning, or on Monday and Wednesday. That way I’m usually done for the day by noon, but Monday/Wednesdays I’m there til after sundown.” He sighed dramatically, handing her back the device with a flourish. “Ah, the price you pay to have weekends open and nights free. Let me know about the study hall, though. Have a nice day!” He waved and walked off immediately so as not to leave an opening for the sweet but talkative girl to keep their conversation going. Aqua really was nice, and that daily study hall would probably be extremely helpful once his coasting caught up with him, but right now the only things he wanted in the world were a shower and a nice, long nap. 

And maybe, even if he did try to banish the thought as quickly as it had come, also Axel.


	7. Chapter Seven

When Roxas woke up to his alarms at four, he felt like a new man. He lazily got up and headed to the kitchen, throwing a pod and some water into their keurig and starting his coffee brewing. Then he headed back down the hall, stopping off in the bathroom to brush his teeth, despite already having done so after he had taken his shower. Deciding actually doing something with the fluffy spikes of his hair would look like he was going out of his way to look nice, he headed back into his bedroom. He threw on some grey jeans that were definitely on the skinny side, and a deep red hoodie with a crisp white zipper went on over a simple black tee that had a little bit of a v to the neckline. Finally, he tugged on his usual black and white checkered vans, rose to his feet...and saw that it was only four fifteen. He sighed, then headed to the kitchen for his coffee. Well, he obviously had a little time to kill. He went and grabbed his laptop from the desk in his room, and then brought it out to sit on the couch in the living room. Opening it, the code he was working on in his spare time blinked up onto the screen; he hadn’t shut his laptop down after its last use but had instead just closed it. He frowned at it as he got back to work. This was part of a pet project in which he was designing an app game of sorts, but as it wasn’t for anything, he seldom found the time to work on it. He commented out a few segments and then began a new string, quickly losing himself in his work. When he reached for his coffee next, it had cooled significantly, and he realized it was time to head out. He properly shut the laptop down this time, placing it back in his room and grabbing his wallet and keys off the bed before making his way out the door. Sora had been asleep and Kairi was in an afternoon class on Friday, so he had opted to walk to the house. Now that the sun was beginning to set and the air was cooling ever so slightly, the travel really wasn’t too bad. Not wanting to spoil his good mood or make himself anxious with another reminder of his slightly-complicated feelings, Roxas opted to skip his headphones and instead let himself wonder what kind of game Axel would choose. Probably something arcade-style or an obscure combat game, something that Roxas would be experiencing for the first time so he wouldn’t have an advantage. He tried thinking of games in those styles that he wouldn’t be familiar with, a humorously futile endeavor, until he could see the Victorian home approaching him. He had noticed in the time Kairi had brought him, and his day-long gaming session, that visitors texted or called to announce their arrival, since the walk from the back living room to the front door would involve Demyx having to expend effort. He pulled out his phone, typing the message letting Demyx know he was there and sending it right as his feet hit the steps to the front door. He received a command to come in almost immediately. As he pushed the front door open, faint music clearly coming from where the living room was hit his ears; his familiarity with the song made his stomach flip as he guessed, or maybe hoped, who it was that had selected it. 

‘see my reflection as I slowly pass 

And I long for this mirrored perspective 

When we'll be lovers, lovers at last 

You gotta spend some time, love 

You gotta spend some time with me 

And I know that you'll find love 

I will possess your heart’ 

He shook his head, a smile playing at the corners of his lips, then strolled further into the house at as casual of a gait as he could manage. As he rounded the doorway and entered the room, the song was much more clear. 

‘I will possess your heart 

You reject my advances and desperate pleas 

I won't let you let me down so easily 

So easily 

You gotta spend some-‘ 

Roxas switched his focus to the room he had stepped into, catching Demyx’s wave and returning it with a little one of his own. Axel was sitting in the chair off to his roommate’s side, in the middle of taking a huge hit off the bong. He quirked his eyebrows up at Roxas as he caught his eye, then pulled back and let out a billowing cloud of puffy white smoke. 

“Roxy,” he purred a greeting, holding the bong out for the short blonde to take. Roxas made a snarling grimace at the nickname but took the glassware from the redhead anyway, his expression sending Demyx into a fit of giggles. The murderous expression Axel threw at him shut him up quickly, though, and as he attempted to switch his laughter into a poorly faked cough, Roxas gave the bong over to him while sticking out his tongue at his friend. Demyx just winked at him, sparking the lighter to life and taking his hit, and Axel rose to go turn down the music to a more ambient volume and their TV setup on. Roxas heard him call, “heads up, cutie,” before a controller was flying towards him through the air. He managed to catch it without looking like an idiot, and saw the other controller land on the couch next to Demyx. When Roxas threw him a quizzical look, Axel shrugged. “I’m gonna play you when we have time for a real match. You and Dem are gonna duke it out til everyone who’s coming out is here.” He said it innocently enough; Roxas wouldn’t have noticed anything was off except for the look he saw Demyx exchange with him. He looked confused, but Axel pretended not to see him, instead popping in a disk, slinking back to his chair, and curling up into it. The game loaded up and when it did, Roxas gave a small, excited chuckle. 

“Mario Kart? Oh man, you want this to turn into a brawl?” Axel grinned wickedly in response, and Demyx sat forward, scooping up his controller enthusiastically. 

“This game is MY go-to favorite; I think I might actually stand a chance this time!” he said, eagerly button-mashing his way through the starting screens and menus. They played several rounds; yelling and companionable quips replaced the in game music and Axel took it upon himself to keep the bowl loaded and, later, to pass out some beers. By the time Marluxia strolled in to the living room, the light from outside had dimmed to almost nonexistence. 

“Hey Marly,” Axel drawled, motioning for the pink-haired man to sit and passing him the bong. Marluxia took it with a nod and sank gracefully onto the couch next to Demyx. Roxas looked up when the race was over, Demyx gleefully jeering about winning more of their games before pausing the game and looking confusedly at their friend. 

“Dude where is everyone? It’s like seven thirty,” he said with a slight pout. Marluxia smirked, looking sidelong at Axel. 

“I think this is it, Dem. The absence of most of our group can be attributed to the text Axel sent out saying-“ he began before a pillow came flying from seemingly nowhere, nailing him in the face. Demyx’s eyes widened, and then turned knowingly to look at his roommate. 

“Ah. Marly, wanna go grab a beer? That new bar, The Snuggly Duckling, is having drink specials since it’s opening week.” Marluxia threw a dirty look at Axel, now free of the pillow missile, and rose to his feet. 

“That sounds wonderful. I heard they hired a pianist with no hands, I’ve been DYING to see what that’s about,” he said in his smooth voice, making his way towards the kitchen. “Good luck, Roxas. I’m sure I’ll see you later,” he added before slipping out the doorway. Demyx was right behind him, but also paused before making his exit. 

“Axe, you’re welcome to the weed, as you know, but please keep what I said earlier in mind. Roxas, kick his ass at his game. He needs someone to take his ego down a peg or two.” He winked, and then Roxas found himself alone with Axel, who was trying to look innocent while loading them another bowl. 

“So what text was Marluxia talking about?” Roxas said, crossing his arms and lifting an eyebrow at the redhead. Axel smirked, dodging Roxas’ question by asking one of his own. 

“Aren’t you curious to know what game I picked? Or are you not taking this as seriously as you should be?” The words flowed smoothly, teasingly, and Roxas was thrown off-guard for a second. Axel took the split-second pause to start handing Roxas a bunch of items, which he took and held automatically while still struggling to come up with an appropriately snarky response. 

“Ok, fine. What game are we playing?” he said, but then added, “and why am I holding everything?” Axel had handed him the bong, the grinder which was already full of finely-ground weed, and both of their open beer bottles; Roxas was struggling not to drop anything, since any item that fell would make a huge, or costly, mess. 

“Because we’re relocating,” was Axel’s easy response, “and because I need my hands for the case of beers and a spare controller for you. And the game, of course.” Roxas’ stomach flipped uncomfortably at his words. How to tell the gorgeous man in front of him that he didn’t want to follow upstairs, despite the small but growing part of him that really did want to do just that. As if reading the thoughts in his head, Axel sighed. “Don’t worry, Demyx mentioned something to me, I’m not trying to lure you up there to trap you or do anything you’d seriously regret later. The game I picked is for the PS2, and we only keep the newer consoles out here. I’ve got all the classics in my room.” That was all the excuse Roxas needed. Although his words were pricking at Roxas... 

“Wait, what did Demyx say?” As Axel’s mouth opened and he started shaking his head, Roxas’ irritation finally pushed him past the intimidated cloud his crush had cast over him, and he cut the redhead off. “Damnit, Axel, you cant keep evading all the questions about you guys all talking about me. Super not cool.” Any anger in the snap had dissipated almost immediately, and by the end of it he had given his tone the same quality as his puppy-dog-eyed expression, almost pleading. Axel stared, unblinking and unmoving, for a full second, and Roxas wondered if he had just embarrassed himself with the attempt, before the other man’s gaze shifted and he sighed, giving in. 

“He just big-brothered me over you, don’t worry Roxy. Kairi did too, actually. You’ve got a lot of people willing to fight me over your honor, you know,” he sniffed, but his eyes were sparkling with laughter. Then he took on a more serious demeanor, both in voice and expression. “Actually, that leads me to another thing I want to discuss with you, but let’s go upstairs before you drop something, shortie.” Initially, Roxas was glad to get moving, because the longer they stood there, the greater chance there was that he really WOULD drop something; by the time they’d reached the kitchen, Axel stopping to pull a case of beers from the fridge, Roxas’ anxiety was skyrocketing. Not knowing just WHAT exactly it was that Axel wanted to discuss tortured him every step of the way up the narrow stairs, down a tiny hallway spotted with doors, and through the last one on the right. When the door was pushed open and he followed the redhead inside, the anxiety vanished in the wake of the curiosity that spiked in him as he looked into the private view of the other man. Axel’s room was practically wallpapered with posters, artworks, pages of text, band’s concert announcements, photos, and other various scraps of paper. All the furniture in the relatively spacious room was dark wood or covered in black; a big bed dominated one corner of the room and was covered with a fluffy-looking black comforter and a jumble of black pillows, with a dark grained wood bedside table and matching bookcase rising up against the wall behind it. There was a dark dresser to the left of the door, and even a black couch, shoved up against the foot of the bed facing a small black coffee table and further, a TV on a black and glass entertainment stand with its shelves covered in several classic video game consoles. The room was pretty tidy, but a cracked closet hinted at a mass of items shoved into it. Axel gestured towards the couch and table as he went over to the entertainment system, powering on the TV and popping a disk from a case he held in his hand into an old PS2 Slim. He didn’t close the lid to the disk tray, but he did scoop up a second controller and made his way back to the couch, depositing all the items he held onto the table next to the ones Roxas had already placed there. Roxas had taken a seat at the farthest end of the couch, and he was grateful for the space left between them as Axel sat on the opposite end, facing Roxas with his legs crossed beneath him, and the anxiety from earlier crept back to the forefront of his mind. 

“Soo,” Roxas forced out, unable to keep quiet. Axel’s easy smirk found its place on his lips, and he took over. 

”So,” he began, picking up his beer and taking a deep pull. “One point that both of them made was that I should just leave you alone if I was just looking to hook up with you.” He just drove right in, stripping away many of Roxas’ comforting maybe-he-doesn’t-know beliefs with every word. Kairi and Demyx were traitors, albeit sweet ones. He couldn’t dwell on the thought, however, as Axel continued speaking. “Just to clarify, here, gorgeous; that’s how it is?” The look in his eyes as he asked set Roxas on fire. He drew a shuddering breath and nodded quickly, not trusting his words. Axel nodded as well, but not in the final way Roxas had feared; it was just accepting a truth he already seemed to know. “So, to be frank here, I haven’t sincerely dated someone in...a long time. Wasn’t exactly planning to start either, you know?” He paused, while Roxas’ heart sank. This was it, the ‘let’s just be friends’ moment, which was the best case scenario, right? He braced himself for it, so the soft, thoughtful words that came instead sent his mind reeling. “It’s kind of...funny...You make me feel... like I shouldn’t give up on trying. So I had a thought,” a slow smirk began to grow on his face at these words, and he changed direction, “do you ever gamble?” 

“Occasionally,” Roxas said cautiously, and Axel laughed. 

“You will if you hang around Luxord much. How about we up the stakes on this game?” 

“I’m in,” was Roxas’ immediate reply. He was still burning embers from before, and thoughts were leaping to life like sparks in him. Axel’s answering grin at the speed of Roxas’ response made him a little nervous. 

“The game is gonna be Drunk Katamari. I’ll let you play the tutorials right now if you’ve never played, but then we take a few shots, and start multiplayer. We drink a beer between each game. Out of five rounds.” Roxas nodded. He could usually handle his alcohol pretty well as long as he didn’t go totally overboard like he had the other night, and although he had only heard of the game, he trusted in his innate abilities. “My stakes are this; if I win, I get what I want. I’ll take you on one, singular, date, to see what that’s all about, but after that I get to shamelessly flirt and try to charm you into bed. You’re absolutely allowed to say no, and I’ll accept that, but I at least get to try. If you win; you get to define however or whatever you want things to be between us, be that ‘leave me the hell alone’ or...anything else. I’ll accept whatever it is, and we’ll give that a go. I can’t promise it’ll work out for long, or at all, but I will give it my best shot for as long as I can. You in?” 

“Doesn’t really sound like you’re losing either way,” Roxas managed, his emotions so tumultuous that he was just trying to hang on to the conversation playing out. “It sorta sounds like you’re definitely gonna get me drunk and alone in your room.” Axel’s eyes burned into him, and it was impossible to doubt the sincerity in his next words. 

“I texted Marly, specifically requesting Demyx come back home at least sober enough to check in. You won’t be alone with me for very long.” He threw Roxas a wounded look that cut him deeply before continuing, “let me reiterate; this is not a trap. I’m not trying to get you drunk and take advantage or anything. I promise to be, if not a PERFECT gentleman, at least a gentleman.” He made a show of crossing his heart, elaborately flourishing his fingers while drawing two imaginary lines across his chest. The motion forced a giggle out of Roxas, breaking the tension. 

“Oh okay, I’m game,” Roxas said, butterflies exploding to life in his stomach at his own words. As he spoke, the redhead’s expression grew into a predatory grin. He stood up and walked to his bookshelf, finding two shot glasses among the knickknacks, books, games, and other items lining the shelves. He set them down on the table with a definitive thud. 

“Load us a bowl, then, Roxy? I’m gonna go hit the fridge.” Axel turned and disappeared, and Roxas set to work, loading the bowl quickly and then, itching with anticipation now that his hands were unoccupied, actually got up to go close the disk tray and load up the game. The logo proclaiming ‘Katamari Damacy’ in both English and Roxas assumed Japanese, sat above a field with some cows, mountain scenery, a rainbow, and some sort of mass of various objects. In the ball, for lack of a better word, he could pick out an airplane, an octopus, a...baseball field? What was this game? He quickly went back to his seat, and although he knew he may regret drinking more than necessary, took a deep drink from the bottle in front of him. Luckily Axel returned, holding a frost-covered bottle of Fireball whiskey, and practically bounced onto the couch. The music from the game’s loading screen began in the background; it was strange, repetitive, and catchy, but humorous in its oddity. Axel nodded his head at the bong, wordlessly directing Roxas to start it, while he filled both shot glasses and moved one in front of Roxas. Roxas lit the bowl, taking a hard pull from the piece, while Axel grabbed a controller and navigated his way through the game. 

“So, are you gonna need the tutorial, or have you played this before?” Axel asked casually, his eyes flicking to Roxas. 

“I’ve never played and I need every advantage I can get here, so yes please,” Roxas quipped, handing the bong to the redhead. After he returned it, Axel chose a tutorial level, and let Roxas run through it to figure out the complex controls. You were a tiny figure, rolling a ball that picked up items relative to its size, which grew as you picked up more items. After he had successfully completed the tutorials and objective challenges, he set the controller down on the table and leaned back. 

“You ready?” Axel purred, picking up his shot and holding it aloft. Roxas picked up his own glass, not ready at all but dying to get started. 

”Lets go,” Roxas gulped, then tapped his glass on the tabletop before throwing it back at the same time Axel did. The whiskey had a sharp taste of cinnamon and left him feeling warm, but almost as soon as his glass touched the table, Axel was refilling them. 

”Round two,” stated the taller man, before they both downed the liquid. Roxas spluttered a little as the fiery liquid burned its way down his throat, but he tapped his glass back down onto the table again. “Last one, then we’ll chill for a minute before we start,” Axel said, topping them off yet again. Roxas licked his lips, lifted his glass, and was ready to go when Axel paused. “Good luck, Blondie. I hope you put up a good fight,” his eyes and voice smoldered, and Roxas wondered if he would spontaneously combust. Then he clinked his glass against the one Roxas was still holding up, and they both swallowed them down. Roxas set the glass back down a little more forcefully than necessary, and leaned back into the side of the couch. He was starting to feel warm and a pleasant, fuzzy cloud began to settle around him. He took the bong Axel offered on autopilot, and as the cloud of smoke he exhaled was dissipating into the air between them, a giggle slipped from between his lips. 

“I really like your room,” he said, the conventionality of the statement striking him as funny. Axel apparently found something funny as well, because a devious smile flitted across his face. 

“Well thanks. I’m glad it meets your approval,” he said teasingly, then puffed his hit out as smoke rings. 

“Oh cool! I’ve always wanted to be able to make rings!” Roxas said, watching as a particularly strong circle finally broke apart. 

“I picked up smoking a long time ago. I remember the first time I blew one, it was by mistake, and I spent another hour trying to figure out how I had done it,” Axel chuckled warmly, and Roxas couldn’t help but picture a much younger version of the redhead puffing out his cheeks with a frustrated look on his face. His giggles returned, and once they’d subsided, he looked up at the redhead next to him. There was a faint tint to his cheeks behind the inverted tear drops; it was the only hint of his intoxication that Roxas could see. His eyes were clear, bright, and locked with Roxas’ in a stare that charged the quiet room with the same electric current that had been felt on the porch. Axel scooted a little closer to hand the smaller man the glassware, and their fingers brushed when Roxas took it. Knowing his face was turning red, he looked away and took his hit, eyes looking around in a desperate bid to keep themselves off Axel. This was ridiculous. His eyes fell on a piece of art on the wall near him, and the painted rendering of his roommate reading and laying on her stomach in some grass quickly and efficiently distracted him. 

“Hey! That’s Kairi,” he said with a hint of awe touching his voice. “Dude, that’s beautiful.” Axel sighed fondly at the picture, his eyes following Roxas’ to it. 

“Thanks,” he said softly. “I like to paint her. She’s so full of life, it comes out in anything I do. As far as sisters go, she’s a good one.” Axel plucked the bong from Roxas’ hands, taking another big hit before apparently deciding the bowl was done and setting the piece back on the coffee table. Roxas picked up a controller, fidgeting with it while struggling with himself. Axel watched him without moving, which combined with his lowered inhibitions and finally allowed him to speak. 

“Axel?” he said timidly, looking at the man’s hands rather than letting himself meet his eyes. The hands twitched a split second before he spoke. 

“Yes, Roxas?” His name rolled off the man’s tongue like honey; slow and sweet and heavy with something Roxas couldn’t name without being willing to break and look up into his eyes. So instead he forced himself to continue, knowing it was too late for him to back down now. 

“Why...why are you doing this, this bet and all? I mean, if you just want to hook up because I’m gay and presently available, why are you going through all this...this extra...effort, I suppose. I mean, it’s not like I’m gonna stop coming around, Demyx is the only person I know in town with bud. If you want someone to chill with, I obviously don’t have other commitments. But I’m not...if I slept with you and then we were done, I’d regret it. Why go into this, or keep chasing after me, if that’s how it’s gonna be?” He finally forced himself to look up, trying to gauge the other male’s reaction to his words. Axel looked...bewildered, briefly, then intense. 

“Truly, I can’t give you an answer. I don’t know. I don’t want to be tied down because I don’t want all the downsides to a regular fuck, and I haven’t found anyone I was interested in both in bed and out.” His words faded for a moment, and when he continued, his voice was low and held much more heat. “Something about you, though...I actually like your company.” He barked out a laugh, waving his hand dismissively in the air. “Sure, I love Demyx like family, but he annoys me like family, too. The others, they’re there to keep things interesting. But you...when you left me on that gaiadamn porch, I wanted nothing more than to chase you down and drag you back here, but I also wanted...to see you again, which is very unusual for me.” He shrugged, and Roxas was still mentally stumbling along trying to follow the quick, intense flow of his speech. “I’ve always believed in that follow-your-heart crap...I figured I shouldn’t let you get away without giving it my best go, you know?” He had been leaning forward as he spoke, and when he fell silent, Roxas found himself close enough to smell the sharp, spicy scent of the redhead’s cologne. It suited him, some faraway part of his brain decided, but his main focus had suddenly become the man’s lips, which were parted slightly less than a foot away from his own. He froze, worried that any movement he made would involuntarily be into Axel’s arms, and his indecision must have been evident on his face, because Axel’s breath caught and he closed the distance another inch or so. 

“I thought you were being a gentleman?” Roxas threw out desperately, trying to ignore the voice in his head screaming at him for destroying the moment. Axel blinked, then leaned back quickly with a grumble. 

“I didn’t say perfect, you know. A little, tiny kiss wouldn’t really be breaking any rules,” he pretended to pout, grabbing both controllers and passing one to Roxas with a wink. Roxas laughed breathlessly, accepting his. Axel did have a point. A kiss with his crush wouldn’t really give him anything to regret...Eyes locked on the screen so he could sound nonchalant, he spoke, halting Axel as he was about to enter them into multiplayer mode. 

“Can I raise the stakes?” His voice didn’t carry the offhand quality he had been aiming for, but Axel’s interest was clearly peaked anyway. He turned halfway back to the blond with an eyebrow raised. 

“What did you have in mind?” Axel asked quickly, and it was Roxas’ turn to smirk. 

“Pour one more shot,” he commanded, and Axel obeyed without hesitation while he continued. “You get this shot to balance out your greater experience with this game. We still have a beer between each match, but the winner gets to ask the loser a question, any question, that has to be answered 100% fully and accurately. And if you win, you get your still-gentlemanly kiss.” As soon as the words had left his mouth, Axel had picked up the shot and gulped it down without breaking his eye contact, while tapping the button to enter them into multiplayer. Roxas winked at his companion, definitely feeling the whiskey working in his system, and Axel’s eyes grew large before they moved to the screen, with Roxas almost reluctantly doing the same. 

In the game, a strange, disembodied head was telling them something about battling to beat their opponent to see who was prince. Then they were dropped into the three-minute-long round, and the game was on. Roxas quickly realized that the match took place in a small arena full of completely random items, and that they were trying to roll up as many of the items as they could as quickly as possible so as to make their ball larger than their opponent’s. Axel was doing something that caused his controller to make a rapid clicking sound before his ball glowed and launched itself across the arena. Roxas ground his teeth, furiously trying to work the controls and keep up with Axel. Periodically new items would spawn, and Roxas got lucky a few times when a cluster of items appeared in front of him, but Axel’s ball grew quickly until Roxas learned an embarrassing quirk to the game; if one ball was much larger than the other, than the smaller ball could be rolled up along with all the other various items. While struggling to free himself from Axel’s hold, he accidentally learned how to do the dashing thing Axel had been doing while simultaneously escaping. It wasn’t quick enough, however; as a twenty second counter ticked down, the beeping made the tension peak and the game became desperate and frantic until the disembodied head was back, praising Axel’s superior ball. 

“Do you like Demyx?” Axel fired off, so quickly that it took Roxas a second to remember his own rules. His tone was different, almost angry; that couldn’t be right, could it? It was similar, though. The tension made a tiny giggle slip past his control, and Axel’s eyes narrowed. 

“Not like you’re asking. He seems cool and chill and I’d like to be his friend, and obviously the weed and all, but he’s not really my type.” Axel’s tense form began to relax, and Roxas thought he saw something resembling relief flit across the redheads face before he turned away, pulling out a pair of beers and handing one to the blonde. Roxas drank it as quickly as he could; three long drinks and he had polished off the bottle. Axel had been a hair faster and was already starting up the next round, but casually spoke while they waited to be able to play. 

“So what IS your type?” The smooth question made Roxas blush and fiddle with the controller’s joysticks aimlessly. 

“You only get one question per win,” he hedged, and the game released them into play. Again, Axel was off like a shot. 

“That’s for the game. This is just a question for the sake of getting to know you better, you adorable little thing,” Axel looked at him for a second, batting his eyelashes dramatically at Roxas and chuckling at the expression he had received. Roxas scoffed, trying to recover his pride. 

“Is this actually you trying to figure out if I think you’re hot?” he asked instead of answering. Axel shrugged, a smile tugging at his lips. 

“Don’t you?” the redhead retorted confidently, seductively, and Roxas lost his focus on the game for a second; he recovered quickly after Axel took advantage of his lapse to collide with him, sending several of his gathered items bouncing off. 

“Fucker,” Roxas muttered, regrouping and resuming his rapid quest around the area. Then he snarled, “but yeah, you’re fucking hot. And you know it. Ass.” Axel laughed outright at this, zooming past Roxas to snatch up the items he had been heading towards. Roxas triggered the speed burst, trying to pass his opponent and get some of the newly-spawned objects, but couldn’t. As the countdown began and Roxas’ frustration spiked, Axel spoke again, and ensured himself a second win. 

“My preference changes, but right now, my type is sexy, snarly, short, and blonde,” he noted coolly, throwing a sidelong glance towards Roxas that raked over him head to toe, and he felt the fire in the redhead’s look. The flash burn he was experiencing distracted him from the game ending and Axel being declared the winner again, but he gave a sound that was half gasp, half growl when he looked back to the game. 

“You’re cheating,” he rumbled, crossing his arms and pouting, while Axel fished out another two beers for them. He winked broadly as he passed Roxas one. 

“It’s not cheating! It’s not MY fault you’re too busy thinking about my type to pay attention to the game,” Axel said, throwing his beer back as he finished. A devious glint entered Roxas’ eyes. After Roxas had chugged his own, he set it back and ran the back of his hand over his mouth. He leaned towards the redhead, testing the water as he decided to try his hand at Axel’s own game. His hand stretched towards the tattoos on the other man’s face seemingly with a mind of its own, and Roxas vaguely wondered if he was too drunk to be doing this, but batted the weak thought away immediately. Axel had frozen, not a single movement came from his still form, but he managed a strangled-sounding, “um, Roxy, what are you doing?” Roxas chuckled low and slowly, his hand falling onto the back of the couch by Axel’s shoulder instead of actually touching him. 

“Is that the question you’re going with?” Roxas tried to use a seductive tone, but the slight slur to his words probably took away from the effect. Axel blinked, shook his head as if to clear it, and then shot Roxas a look. 

“What would you choose, if you somehow beat me the next three games?” His voice was rough, and through his haze Roxas could tell the question was heavy with more than just the words themselves. He couldn’t figure out exactly what it was, though... 

“I haven’t thought that far ahead yet,” he answered honestly, but tacked on, “do you want me to decide now?” Axel nodded, tight-lipped, and Roxas REALLY wished he knew what the other was thinking. 

“What?” Axel asked, and Roxas realized he must have muttered part of that aloud. He sighed. 

“I wish I knew what you were thinking. You look so tense...” A mischievous smile spread across his face and he stood, steps faltering as he strolled around to the back of the couch, speaking again as he went. “I hope it’s not because you’re worried about what I’m gonna say. That’s a lot of pressure, ya know?” By this point he had reached his goal; he was standing immediately behind Axel’s position, leaning with his back against the arm of the couch, still facing Roxas’ former seat. He leaned down, resting his hands on Axel’s shoulders to support his weight as he practically hummed into the man’s ear. “See, I haven’t really decided what I want. You’re making things incredibly difficult for me, actually.” His hands began to massage the tight muscles under them, finally pulling a response from Axel, who let out an almost inaudible groan at the motion. Roxas ignored that, although it did hint that he was headed in the right direction to get what he wanted here; more time. He really didn’t have an answer, and figured with the current direction they were headed in, it would be a moot point soon. So if he could stall for time to answer, there would be a good chance he would never have to answer at all. “I think you’re gorgeous, you know that. Pretty sure anyone with a pulse would. I wouldn’t really be very interested in you if that were it, though. I mean, ok yeah I would be, but it would be much, much easier to just shut you down. I’ve been trying, you know.” Roxas sniffed haughtily, and he felt the shoulders under his fingertips twitch. “But you hit me a lot harder than that. I might have a little crush,” he whispered the last part right into the redhead’s ear, lips just grazing the skin, and Axel shot off the couch like he’d been electrocuted. He reached into his pocket, yanked a pack of cigarettes out, and fumbled to pull one from the little box. Roxas leaned an elbow onto the vacated armrest, propping his head in his hand and smirking broadly. Axel’s cloudy eyes zeroed in on the smug blonde leaning on his couch, and watched him as he lit the cigarette now between his lips. After his exhale, he spoke in a calm, teasing tone that was completely at odds with everything his body was screaming at Roxas. 

“I’m going to institute a hands-to-yourself policy if you still want me to be a gentleman,” he said lightly, walking at a much more relaxed pace back to his spot on the couch where he picked up his controller. The blonde jutted his lower lip out into a pout as he walked back to his own place, but was congratulating himself on his successful distraction internally. As the round started, Axel spoke again, although Roxas was determined not to be the one distracted this time. “Since you didn’t really have an answer for that question, can I ask why you won’t just sleep with me then, if you at least find me attractive? It wouldn’t have to be a big thing, just be attracted to me for a little...I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed,” he nudged Roxas’ elbow with his own at those words, but only succeeded in throwing off his own character; Roxas was locked in this round. His focus on the game as he rolled up a long line of larger items and made a bigger ball than Axel’s for the first time so far made his words flow without consideration, however. 

“Call me a loser, call me a romantic, I’m sure I’ve heard it before. I just don’t have the temperament to sleep around. I’m either in it 100% or not at all. Not that I’m like, saving myself or something,” he laughed at the idea, “but I’d have to be in a committed relationship with someone before I’m giving it up.” As he had been speaking, Axel’s rolling progress had slowed, and missed some targets entirely, so by the time his words were fading into the air between them, he had finally reached the point where he was able to pick up Axel and his ball. As the countdown began and Axel struggled to break free, he felt confident enough in his advantage to place his controller on the table and pull out the end-game beers, which made the redhead’s actions absolutely frantic and also earned him a baleful glare from the man once the game had begun praising Roxas on being the true prince. He tossed the cigarette that had burned itself down to a nub while they had played into a nearby empty bottle, and accepted his new beer with a grimace but chugged it quickly anyway, with Roxas right on his heels. Once both bottles had hit the tabletop, Roxas leaned back with his hands crossed behind his head. “When was the last serious, committed relationship you were in?” 

Axel shook his head with a chuckle. “I guess it depends what you define as committed, or serious, but I’m not sure I meet the requirements to answer you. I’ve never cohabited before. Never let anyone stay longer than the next morning. I’ve had...friends that I’ve met back up with routinely, but no one thought it was anything more than that. I’ve watched friends get seriously messed up and fucked over and...just broken, over shit that went down in a relationship. And from what I’ve seen, the longer you’re in one, the worse the inevitable pain will be. I’ve never really taken anyone seriously, to be completely truthful.” Roxas nodded, half-expecting that answer. Axel reached, not for the controller this time, but for the bong, and proceeded to load them up another bowl. “In all fairness and by my own rules for the last round, that would mean you get another one,” Axel said slowly, almost as if unwilling yet unable to stop himself from giving Roxas another shot. Roxas took the bowl from him, considering while he sparked the bowl to life, then as he handed the piece to Axel, he finally had one. 

“Doesn’t that get lonely?” he asked quietly, and a faraway look entered brilliantly green eyes. He took his own hit seemingly on autopilot; nothing about his expression changed until his eyes finally fell on Roxas’ and the blank look showed a flash of panic before it closed off into a guarded, tight expression. 

“Sometimes. But lonely is better than some of the things I’ve seen serious heartbreak do,” he said somewhat frostily. “I’d rather just not have a heart at all.” He handed the bong to Roxas, his eyes anywhere but on the blonde. Roxas took his hit, bewildered by the sudden shift in demeanor that came from the other, when Axel sighed. “Sorry, I’m being a dick. Knee-jerk reaction. I’ve been told I get defensive.” He laughed, and his weak attempt at humor still pulled a quick giggle from Roxas. This made Axel pleased, it seemed, for he flashed a more genuine smile at Roxas before taking the bong from him, setting it aside, and pushing a controller at him. “C’mon, lets get this over with. I’ve got this one in the bag.” His cocky grin was doing terrible things to Roxas’s self control, so he snatched it up and glared at the screen. 

“Hey! I totally dominated you that last game,” Roxas protested, even though deep down he knew it wasn’t gonna happen again. Axel clearly agreed with his thought process. 

“Yeahhh, that’s not happening again, blondie. Not with that kiss so close I can almost taste it,” he said haughtily, then while the head on screen was talking again, he chuckled and teased, “no pun intended there, I swear.” A burst of laughter escaped Roxas as they were freed to move, and Roxas tried to keep up, but Axel was flying through the area and scooping up any items he could while Roxas was left to bounce off items too large for him to collect. His drunken limbs couldn’t seem to respond quickly enough anymore to master the intricate controls, and he was fumbling and cursing under his breath. The game passed in silence otherwise, though, because Axel was clearly refusing to allow anything else to take up space in his head. His ball was wildly larger than Roxas’, and when he scooped up the blonde’s ball right before the countdown started, Roxas gave up. He tossed his controller onto the table, then poured them each another shot and packed a little more weed into the bowl. Axel set his controller down with his victory announcement looming on the screen, then raised his eyebrow at the smaller man. 

“To celebrate your victory, to comfort me in defeat, whichever you’d prefer,” he said forlornly, putting down the bong and lifting his shot like a toast. “Consider yourself avenged.” Axel snorted, clinking his glass with the one Roxas held before he tipped it down his throat. Then he pulled out another beer for each of them, placing them on the table and picking up the weed instead. He lit the bowl and looked curiously at Roxas throughout his hit. 

“You know,” he said with a little chuckle, passing the bong as he spoke. “I think this will be my first real date, unless you count like awkward middle school ones with parental chaperones. I don’t even know what to do.” His alcohol consumption was evident in the almost desperate laughter that rolled from him, but Roxas was struck with a matching set of giggles, and they both cracked up for almost a solid minute. Once he’d caught his breath, Roxas snatched the bong back from Axel, took the biggest rip he could, and held it for a few seconds before exhaling in a huge huff. He then grabbed his beer. He owed Axel a kiss, and no matter how chaste, it would still be a kiss from Axel. He needed to build up the courage to do it before he overthought it, and also needed to remind himself it was just a kiss and no big deal. Through the fog of weed and alcohol, Roxas saw that Axel’s mind was elsewhere, or at least that he wasn’t looking at Roxas because he seemed to be lost in thought. That wouldn’t do; Roxas had finally gathered his courage, and could tell he was reaching that dangerous point of being drunk where there was a good chance that he wouldn’t have a clear memory of the events unfolding much further past this one. He slid as smoothly as he could manage towards the redhead, and went largely unnoticed except for a curious, searching look when Roxas laid his hand on the other man’s arm. 

“Hmm? Roxas, I thought-“ he started, but was silenced quickly as Roxas grabbed the collar of his shirt in a fist with one hand, tugged him down until his other hand could reach, and then wrapped that one around the nape of Axel’s neck and crushed their lips together. It was meant to be quick, close-lipped, and done, but that idea disappeared along with every other coherent thought in Roxas’ head as soon as Axel’s brain caught up to what was happening and he responded to Roxas’ action. A burning, boiling fire was lit inside him as the taller man’s lips began to move against his own, and there was no holding back or fighting what he was doing when Axel’s tongue traced the crease where his lips met and he gasped lightly, parting them for the redhead. Axel wasted no opportunity, moving his tongue to taste and tease Roxas’, then tangling briefly with it as his hands had finally made their way to Roxas, one going up to cup the side of his face and hold him closer while the other went to the small of his back and pulled him as tightly to Axel as their positions allowed. The hand on Axel’s collar had released the material and made its way into fiery red locks, his fingers twisting into the unexpectedly soft hair and forcing the kiss deeper, his own tongue tracing the delicate points of Axel’s canines. Then he withdrew briefly, biting at Axel’s lower lip and tugging it slightly before diving back into the kiss, the force of his motion enough to push Axel backwards until he was half-laying on the armrest of the couch. Axel growled deep in his throat at the flash of teeth, pressing Roxas to himself more securely and starting to twist his body, tucking the blond tightly between his lanky frame and the back of the couch. Roxas used the nearer proximity to his advantage, but after another charged moment of making out, he threw a leg over Axel’s hip, forcing their bodies to grind together, and Axel stiffened sharply. His mouth and hands stilled, but when Roxas didn’t, he groaned helplessly and tried to push himself away which resulted in him falling off the couch and landing gracelessly on the floor. He sprang to his feet instantly, and stood towering over Roxas, seeming torn between putting as much space between them as possible and jumping back onto the blonde still laying on the couch looking shocked. “Roxas,” he forced out in a strained, reproachful voice, but the pitiful sound that came from the smaller man at the same time a hand reached out for him almost destroyed his resolve. He fisted his hands in his own mussed locks as if he were about to pull his hair from the roots. “Roxy,” he groaned, sounding pained, “I can’t, you said no. I can’t...let you change your mind now, sweetheart.” His drunken mind was stumbling to find the right words, and Roxas’ quiet moan and heavily lidded eyes over flushed cheeks made him physically turn around and step towards the door. “I’m not well-known for being noble, and there’s nothing I want more in the world than to...Roxas...” Axel stopped, wavering between running from the room or right back onto the couch, but was saved by a very tipsy Demyx bursting into the room. 

“Hey guys! Ohmygaia you’ll never believe it, the pianist really DOESN’T ha-“ Axel grabbed his roommate in a crushing grip, clapping a hand over his mouth and hissing in his ear. 

“Please stop talking and help me, for the love of Gaia.” And at this point Roxas had pulled himself onto the arm of the couch, bones seeming to become liquid as he draped himself over the side and giggled at Demyx, well past the point of no return; he was awake but way too drunk to be present in his own head. 

“Demyx, give him back,” he pretended to pout, still giggling. “I’m not done with him yet.” Axel’s fingers tightened spasmodically on the nape of Demyx’s neck, which helped the meaning of the scene before him fall into place, and caused him to burst into laughter. 

“Oh Gaia, you silly little thing, you’re playing with fire,” Demyx chuckled, heading over to the smaller blonde on the couch and attempting to help him slide off of it. “Lets go get you on the couch, and you can sleep it off down-“ Roxas rolled himself across the back of couch and onto the foot of Axel’s bed. 

“Noo, don’t make me leave!” he whined pathetically, attempting to wrap himself in the plush comforter like some sort of cocoon. “Axel’s bed looks so fluffy. And I’m still not done with himmm.” As he hummed the last word, he teetered off balance and fell back onto the pillows, giggling again. “Axelll, I thought you wanted me,” he whined, and Demyx quickly changed tactics, half-catching Axel as he began to take a stumbling step forward. 

“Hey man, lets go have a cig and get some air. I’ll meet you out there.” His words rushed together as he pushed his friend out the door, and once Axel had taken his eyes off the blonde in his bed, he shot Demyx a grateful look and practically ran from them. Demyx chuckled quietly in relief, casually strolling towards his roommate’s bed. “Wow, Rox, last I heard you didn’t wanna hook up. What happened?” he asked playfully, well aware that Roxas would have no idea this conversation ever took place. 

“I bet him a kiss,” Roxas whispered loudly, trying and failing to sit himself upright and eventually just propping himself up on an elbow, hugging one of the redhead’s pillows. “I bet him a kiss, and I’m not done giving it to him, he just left me here...Demyx where’s Axel?” he questioned plaintively, eyelids fluttering heavily when he paused. Demyx slid the shoes from his feet and pushed him down onto the pillows. 

“I’ll go get him, little dude. You just lay here til he comes back,” he lied, tucking the comforter around the smaller blonde. 

“‘Kay,” he mumbled, eyes already slipping shut. Demyx flipped the lights off and closed the door quietly behind him as he made his exit, then leaned heavily on it, recovering himself. Of all the things he could have walked into, saving AXEL from ROXAS was the last thing he could have ever expected. He let out another strangled chuckle as he pushed himself away from the door and towards the stairs. Time to figure out just what kind of kiss had sent Axel fleeing the room like a bat from hell.


	8. Chapter Eight

“Gaia, Dem, I honestly didn’t know I had that kind of self control, wasted as I am right now,” Axel slurred, laying precariously on the porch railing, cigarette smoke lazily trailing up into the night air. “He does NOT send the right signals for wanting me to...ugh, I don’t even know who I am anymore,” his voice slipped out as a groan, and he began his lament. “I’d been making a crack about kissing him, and he added it to the stupid game. I was like who am I to miss out on that opportunity, if he was handing it to me? I guess I didn’t realize how drunk we were getting.” As Axel paused, Demyx nodded and sipped the mixed drink he’d made himself on the way outside. “He’s everything I want in the world right now, Dem. What if this is my only chance? What if I’M the one who ends up with regrets after this? How messed up would that be.” He rolled himself off the rail, catching himself on his feet with a thud. Demyx notes he seemed to have talked himself into going back to Roxas, so Demyx deflated him quickly. 

“You’d end up with worse regrets if you did something he wouldn’t want you to have done when he wakes up. Even more if you did something when he wouldn’t remember it later.” Axel looked horrified at himself and sat down on the weathered wood planks beneath his feet, leaning his back on the post and taking an angry drag from his cigarette. 

“You see, this is why I didn’t want to mess around with people who want me to consider their feelings,” he said harshly, practically spitting out the last word as if it were poisonous. Demyx took another sip, then shot his roommate a smug look over the rim of his glass, hoping that the man actually WOULD remember their talk in the morning. 

“The fact that you said that in the past tense means you are actually planning on messing around with him. Man face it, for better or worse, no matter how small, you have at least one tiny little feeling for that kid sleeping in your bed.” Axel looked like he’d been struck, and opened his mouth as if to deny or make some sort of comeback, but couldn’t seem to get any words to come out. Demyx rose, stretching. “I’m gonna get us some blankets and pillows, turn on Scott Pilgrim, and we can camp out in the living room. Will you load us a bowl when you come back in?” He left the redhead, still trying to come up with some sort of response to give his friend, and headed inside. He loaded up the DVD first, getting the TV working and letting the previews roll. Then he headed upstairs to their studio/storage room, where he pulled several old quilts and blankets out of the closet. He stopped into his room next, grabbing himself a pillow and after a second’s thought, his other one for Axel. He peeked at his phone, which had vibrated in his pocket, and saw that Kairi had sent a text, asking if he had seen Roxas because neither he nor Axel were answering their phones. Demyx paused to tell her that both were safe, drunk, and would be crashing here under Demyx’s care, then slipped his phone back into his jeans. He had NOT started the day planning on babysitting drunk friends, and his skintight jeans had been donned in the hopes he might pick someone up at the bar, not to actually be slept in. He shrugged to himself, regathering the bedding, and exited the room. He noticed Axel’s door was open, however, so he tiptoed over to it to see if Roxas was still sleeping. Axel was standing in front of the bed with his back to the door; his figure was looming over the prone form of Roxas, lightly snoring, curled up around one of Axel’s pillows. The bong and grinder were in his hands, and Demyx quickly understood that Axel must have come upstairs to retrieve them, but leaning over Roxas was definitely not on his way out the door. Demyx crept forward, in case he needed to call his friend away, but Axel surprised him. Obviously he was struggling with himself, but instead of crossing a line and making Demyx intercede or walking away in defeat, Axel slowly reached forward to delicately muss the blonde’s bedraggled hair. Then, moving at a glacial pace, he leaned down and placed a simple, sweet kiss on the sleeping male’s forehead. As soon as Demyx saw that, he backed away as quietly yet quickly as he could, to avoid being accidentally spotted. As he made his way downstairs, the romantic in him hoped that Axel would keep that memory, too. 

When Axel came down the stairs just a few seconds behind him, Demyx briefly wondered if he’d been caught, but neither of them mentioned anything. Actually, neither said anything for quite some time, despite smoking a few bowls together, turning on the movie that they had seen a thousand times, and turning off the lights. Demyx actually thought Axel had passed out; he had been pretty damn drunk before but had continued to nurse a beer throughout the evening anyway. Then the redhead spoke in the dark around the time that Scott watched Ramona get in the car with her ex, and Demyx nearly fell off the couch in surprise. 

“Hey Dem?” he called, barely louder than a whisper. 

“What’s up?” the blonde asked quietly, confirming he was awake and listening. 

“What’s the best part? I know all of the worsts, but when people blab on about how happy they are with their significant other, it all sounds so mindless and cliche that I tend to tune it out. What’s been your favorite part in a relationship? Seriously.” Demyx ‘hmm’ed aloud so his friend would know he had been heard, and gave the question some honest thought. He really did want Axel to wind up happy, he was practically a brother, and eventually the sleeping-around thing was going to wind up with him all alone. Axel’s usual stubbornness made most attempts to change his mind about settling down with someone, even just casually, about as effective as talking to a rock. This question might just be the best chance he would ever get to getting through to his friend. 

“Can I give you two?” Demyx had finally settled on two things to say and couldn’t make up his mind. Axel whispered an affirmative and then waited. Demyx spoke. “The most fun part is the beginning, where you’re flirting and fucking constantly, learning about each other, likes and dislikes, all that jazz. But the best part, at least so far as I’ve had, is after you’ve been living together for a while and you don’t go out as much so you schedule dates together. It’s the first time you blow off that date to stay home in your pjs eating Chinese takeout and ice cream in bed, because you realize you both prefer to be home enjoying each other’s company in comfort than out doing anything else, even if that’s what you do every night. That’s been the best thing I’ve ever had, at least,” he trailed off on a bitter note, old memories surfacing to leave a bad taste in his mouth. If he ended on that note, though... “But I guess,” he forced himself to continue, “wouldn’t the best part be the ultimate goal of any serious relationship; to watch the person you want to spend your life with look you in the eye and promise to be yours and yours alone forever, and mean it? Swoon,” he said, pretending to faint onto his pillow despite the room’s overwhelming darkness. Whether because he was being ignored or truly hadn’t been seen, he wouldn’t know, however. 

“What if it’s just a lie? Or meant at that moment but later is a different situation?” Axel questioned gravely, and his voice sounded haunted. 

“What if it’s not?” Demyx threw back. “Everything’s a gamble, ask Luxy. But even against the worst of all odds, the only way to lose for SURE is to not play at all.” Axel had no response, it seemed, because the room fell silent again except the movie still playing distantly. Eventually Demyx felt himself nodding off, and he almost missed the quiet whisper of thanks that came from the redhead before his eyes drifted shut and didn’t open again until the next morning.


	9. Chapter Nine

Sunlight pouring in from an unfamiliar angle pierced through his closed lids and forced Roxas from his deep, dreamless sleep. He stretched, head throbbing slightly as he yawned, and then blinked his eyes open to see- wait, where the fuck was he? It took a few seconds before cloudy memories of the previous night began sinking in on him at a rapidly quickening pace. Oh yeah, this was Axel’s room, they came up here to play that game, that Axel had turned into...a bet. Yeah, then they’d gotten massively drunk playing that stupid ball game before he’d- oh no. Bet that kiss. Oh no, no, no. Then confessed how attractive he found Axel while - oh Gaia - trying to flirt. The memories were coming at the rapid, flickering pace of a slideshow running out of control, each lasting mere seconds before a new one took its place. Rubbing Axel’s shoulders, feeling them under his hands. No, no. Losing, taking shots. Sliding towards the man on the couch. Oh fucking hell. The kiss. Dear Gaia, kissing Axel. It came in brief flashes of warm hands and a hot mouth and tongues twisting together before Roxas groaned, slamming the pillow over his face as if he could block out the images playing behind his eyelids. However, the smell that invaded his senses once the pillow enveloped his face was spicy, warm, intriguing, and deposited one final memory in his mind; Axel’s eyes, wide and caught in a mix between anger, fear, and something that made Roxas’s heart thump unevenly, before he turned and ran from the room. No, no, no, no. What had he done? He looked down at himself, noting he was indeed in the man’s bed but was fully clothed in exactly what he was wearing the night before, complete with pockets full of his wallet, keys, and phone. There were shot glasses and beer bottles abandoned by the couch and on the coffee table, but the bong and grinder had disappeared. Did that mean someone had come back while Roxas had slept? Or had it disappeared before he was unconscious but after his memories ceased? Try as he might, he couldn’t get anything else to come to him. Nor could he see any sign of the redhead, or his housemate for that matter. Then he realized he was wrong; he HADN’T slept alone. Axel’s cat yawned, exposing large fangs, before languidly stretching and walking over to rub herself up against Roxas. He petted her distractedly, pulling out his phone to stall for time before he had to leave the relative safety of Axel’s bed. He had missed a few texts from Sora as well as a few texts and calls from Kairi over the span of the evening, but the more pressing one had came from Axel just about an hour ago. 

Saturday 7:12 A.M. 

214-898-1305: come downstairs when you’re up and ready? 

214-898-1305: we need to talk 

Roxas gulped, definitely not thinking that their talk was going to be a good one. What had he DONE? He internally screamed at himself before sighing, scooting himself off the bed, then picking up Boo and cradling her against his chest as he made the daunting trip downstairs to face Axel. Maybe he wouldn’t be as upset about whatever it was if he saw Roxas using his cat as an emotional shield. Roxas snorted to himself at the thought, but as he stepped into sight in the doorway downstairs and the chatter between Axel and Demyx died, he was grateful for the cat’s encouraging presence. Both men were in their own respective cocoon of blankets, the only thing signifying that either had left their positions all night were two large cups of coffee on the table. Roxas scuffed his feet in the walkway, more than a little embarrassed from what he could remember of the previous night and more than a little afraid of what he couldn’t. Demyx broke the painful moment before he could spiral out of control in his head, but in a way that made him want to groan and punch the taller blonde. 

“Well, good morning tiger! Come wake and bake with us, and let me hear how much of last night you remember, because I’m VERY excited to fill you in,” he said loudly in a bright, chipper voice, patting the couch next to him. Axel chimed in as Roxas made his way over to the couch. 

“Watch out Dem, he bites. Although to be fair, he only bit ME,” Axel teased with a wink, but his voice was warm and set Roxas’ fear that he had irreparably damaged things between himself and the redhead slightly at ease. Slightly. 

“You’re fucking with me, I didn’t-“ Roxas began to protest, but a sudden flash of himself with the redhead’s lower lip between his teeth drew a loud groan from the small blonde as he all but collapsed onto the couch by Demyx. “Nooo...” Demyx patted his shoulder in mock sympathy, pushing the bong into his hands, while Axel snickered and blew him a kiss. As he leaned forward to take his hit, Boo finally abandoned him with a loud meow and headed to go curl up with Axel. 

“I wondered where you went off to, you little traitor,” he said affectionately, rubbing the cat’s chin and eliciting a rumbling purr. 

“So on a scale of one to ten,” Roxas began, but was quickly cut off by the other blonde. 

“Twelve!” Demyx sing-songed cheerfully, taking the bong from Roxas and sparking it for himself. Axel chuckled again, taking his eyes off the cat to give Roxas a piercing look. 

“What’s the last thing you remember clearly?” he asked, but his tone was cautious rather than angry or laughing. So he took whatever happened last night a lot more seriously than his roommate, Roxas surmised. 

“I remember our game, for the most part, all the way to the end. You won,” he trailed off, remembering the other stipulations of their deal besides the kiss. Axel was clearly not satisfied with that answer. 

“And then?” he pressed. Roxas swallowed hard. 

“Then I was being stupidly confident and went for a kiss, since I owed you one.” Demyx burst into loud peals of laughter at his words, and Roxas felt himself blush. Sure, their kiss may have been more...involved than anticipated, but it couldn’t have been that bad, right? 

“Woo, boy did you ever,” Demyx wheezed, catching his breath. “Remember anything after that? Because that’s when the trouble started, right before I got there and rescued poor Axel from you.” Roxas’ eyes widened in horror as Axel nodded gravely. 

“You woulda been proud, Roxy. I-“ he put huge emphasis on the word, “kept my promise; I was a gentleman the whole time. I didn’t know I was going to have to defend your honor from YOU.” Roxas wanted to disappear, to sink right into the couch and just become a part of it. 

“What did I do?” he asked hoarsely, looking first at Demyx and then at Axel when the blonde waved his hand dismissively as if he was passing the explanations off to his roommate. 

“Well,” Axel drawled, clearly enjoying himself now that the events had passed and he was getting a chance to get back at Roxas in a minute way. “You kissed me, alright. Then you basically tackled me when it turned into making out, but when wrapped your leg around me to start rounding the bases, I tried to get away. That’s when this knight in shining armor swooped in to save the day,” Axel gave an exaggerated bow from his seated position, and Demyx giggled, taking over the story. 

“Gaia, Rox, it was hysterical. I walk in and Axel grabs me, begging me to save him. You’re mostly limp, laying on the couch, yelling at me to ‘give him back because you weren’t done’. I tried to take YOU down here so that WE could camp out, but you weren’t having any of that, so I sent Axel out and put you to bed ALONE, despite your best efforts.” He laughed again at some memory that he wasn’t sharing, and Roxas looked desperately towards Axel. 

“Oh my fucking Gaia, Axel, I’m so sorry. I can’t BELIEVE I...that...shit I’m never drinking around you again,” he moaned, burying his face in his hands. He peeked out when Axel spoke again. 

“Awh please don’t say that. Remember, next time I don’t have to be a gentleman.” He grinned predatorily at the small blonde, who made a strangled noise at the reminder of their deal. 

“Yep, maybe never drinking again period. Besides, doesn’t that only go into effect after the other part?” Roxas struggled to buy himself some time. Gaia save him from sexy redheads flirting with him first thing in the morning, especially after a drunken make-out session. Axel shook his head, however. 

“Not a chance, shortie. The date is at my disgression, just stated that it had to happen. Speaking of,” he intoned heavily, and Demyx seemed to take that as his cue. 

“Want some coffee, Rox? I’m gonna go hit the shower," he said, standing and beating a hasty exit before Roxas even had a chance to respond. A grin bloomed on Axel’s face, and he rested his chin on steepled fingers, waiting for Roxas to look at him. When the petite blonde finally did, his embarrassment and chagrin vanished, because Axel’s stare was thoughtful and serious. 

“Roxy, I may have to bend my rules, because I have two ideas I want to try out and I can’t decide which would be better. If I asked you on a second date sometime, separately from our bet, do you think you’d say yes?” Roxas was at a loss, his emotions too tumultuous from the morning’s rollercoaster of events. He settled on teasing, however, as that seemed safe and only halfway like flirting. He definitely knew throwing himself at the redhead was no way to get the man to want to spend time with him outside the bedroom, figuratively speaking. 

“I guess..that would depend on how the first one goes,” he said, adding a haughty sniff as though that weren’t exactly what he wanted. Because for him, clear as day, his feelings had finally, brutally solidified into something that was much bigger than the little crush he had initially thought he had, and was altogether dangerous given the positions each had taken on the necessity of a relationship in regards to sex. Axel blinked at him for a second, clearly not expecting to hear that response. Then he gave Roxas a calculating look. 

“Hmm, I guess that’s right, isn’t it? I can never seem to figure you out, blondie.” Axel grabbed the bong from where it lay abandoned on the table, his hit exhaling as a huge burst of smoke. Then he said, in a much different tone, “Hey Roxas?” The heat had returned, although much gentler and less sure of itself; it lit a slow burn deep inside Roxas as opposed to the flash-fire that had been ignited previously. Axel’s hesitancy struck an endearing nerve. 

“Mmhmm?” he hummed, taking a hit of his own. After he breathed out and raised a curious eyebrow at Axel, the redhead sat a little bit taller, clasping his hands loosely together between his knees. 

“Can I take you out sometime?” Roxas knew he was probably just being silly, since the date was already guaranteed, but that knowledge didn’t stop an explosion of butterflies fluttering in his stomach. He could imagine the man intended it to be sweet and romantic rather than just his usual teasing, right? Probably not...he was so out of his element, trying to be cautious so as to protect himself but enticing enough to really capture the redhead’s interests. 

“Yeah, sure. I guess I’ll let you take me out, Red.” He rolled his eyes around to look at Axel, but the other male’s expression had him backtracking quickly. Axel was smiling, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes, and made Roxas wonder if he HAD been serious, in which case... “Axel, I’d love to go out with you. I’m really looking forward to it.” At that, Axel’s smile was luminous, eyes sparkling, as he sat back. 

“Much better,” he praised with a wink, making Roxas blush. “It is my first real date, after all. Cut me some slack here.” It dawned on Roxas that maybe Axel was taking this seriously simply because it WAS a first of sorts. He smiled indulgently. 

“Alright, alright, sheesh. How come even when I’m the one who doesn’t want to just hook up, I’m STILL somehow moving too fast and not taking things seriously enough?” he grumbled, trying to ease the mood, and it worked; Axel burst out laughing at his words. After he’d gotten himself under control, he forced his face into a stern expression. 

“On THAT note...Roxy, truly, you can’t jump me like that when I’m hammered and expect me to do nothing. I’m not the sort of person who usually turns away a hottie trying to get in my pants.” He smirked at Roxas’ blush and mortified expression, then went on. “It was not the easiest thing in the world to do, and you know the deal now that I’ve won the bet. Next time, unless you’re telling me no, I’m gonna make my move.” Somehow the words, though they hinted at threatening, made Roxas’ mouth go dry and his eyes widen. Images of what could have happened last night, and that Axel was implying he wanted to do the moment Roxas allowed him, sprang unbidden to his mind. Visions where Demyx didn’t come to the rescue, where Axel didn’t run, where Roxas didn’t spend the night in Axel’s bed alone...but also where that was the last time he would wake up in it. The reminder that if he followed down that path, he would ultimately lose Axel, broke through his chaotic thoughts, and Roxas grimaced, devastated from the mere thought. Axel, reading the emotions on the blonde’s face but unable to hear the thoughts behind them, winced. “Is the idea of sleeping with me that bad? Here I was thinking that last night meant that you sorta wanted me, too.” Roxas wanted to hide, to instantly deny Axel’s train of thought, but without the liquid courage of the night prior, he was also a lot more hesitant to make proclamations of attraction. 

“It’s not that, Axel,” he hedged, trying to figure out what he would say as he went. “I’m obviously attracted to you, I’m obviously interested, but it’s more than that. I think that I might...” he paused, trying to force out the admission that he liked Axel more than just physically, but when he was unable to do so, he switched directions quickly. “I might not just want to be done after that. I’d want to continue, and you’d be over it, and I’d regret letting you in just to leave me wanting more.” Axel frowned, and Roxas could see the persuasive argument forming behind the redhead’s eyes, when Demyx finally re-entered the room, a towel around his shoulders beneath his wet hair and a large cup of coffee in his hands, which he passed to a very grateful Roxas. “Demyx, you may be the best friend I’ve ever had,” Roxas said, sipping the steaming liquid, and Axel shot him a wounded look. Demyx, on the other hand, received a death glare when he took his spot by Roxas and threw an arm around him, pulling the smaller male into a side hug. 

“I’m so glad we decided to keep you, Rox,” he said fondly, tousling the other blonde’s messy spikes of hair before gently shoving him away. Axel stood then, stretching. 

“Well, I guess I’m up next for that shower, but I’m gonna want another bowl before I head out to work,” he threw over his shoulder as he sauntered his way out. Then he was gone, and the silence in the room held until the distant sounds of running water could be heard. 

“Rox, you need the opposite of a wingman,” Demyx broke the still air with a small chuckle, grabbing the once-again discarded bong to load it up. “Someone to follow you around when you’re drinking to make sure you DON’T get laid.” Roxas let out a laugh of his own at that, taking the weed gratefully from Demyx. 

“I really can’t believe I did all that,” Roxas groaned, slumping back on the couch once the other blonde had taken the piece from him. “I don’t know what the hell I was doing, but I royally screwed things up, didn’t I?” A low whine escaped his lips as he wondered if that kiss was worth opening the floodgates of his feelings over. Demyx looked at him, considering, and then seemed to make his mind up about something. 

“I actually don’t think so,” Demyx said in a hushed tone, leaning towards Roxas conspiratorially. “I know Axel better than pretty much anyone except Kairi. I know he thinks this whole thing that he’s doing makes him happy, but...it doesn’t. I want him to be happy. So I’m pretty invested in you here, kid. I think you’re the best shot we have at getting through to him. And I’d let you know if you messed things up, believe me. The way things went down...well, I think you gave him a taste of something he can’t have, and if I know Axel, he won’t stop til he gets it. If you can just keep it in your pants, with me as an undercover agent, you just might end up getting Axel to stop sleeping around. If that’s what you’re hoping for here. You might wanna talk to Kairi, too, if it is. Ooh, she texted me last night, by the way,” he admitted sheepishly, running his ringers through damp hair. Roxas felt like a jerk; the last time he had seen Kairi, he was running from her car after begging her to drive him to class post-hangover, one which HE helped bring on. He needed to step up being a friend, he thought with an internal chuckle, especially if he intended to enlist her help in this endeavor. He gave a nod to Demyx. 

“Yeah, I’ll give her a call here in a little. I just need to get myself together first.” Demyx let the silence linger on for a moment before he spoke again. 

“Would you tell me what you want here? I promise I won’t tell Axel, I just...I don’t wanna push him at you only for you to shut him down if he finally does want to be with someone,” Demyx asked hesitantly, his low voice barely carrying to Roxas’ seat beside him. He handed the bong over and waited for Roxas, who was trying to decide if the better option was to guard his newly discovered feelings or share them with someone. Someone who could probably be his best ally in this game he was playing with the redhead. That realization helped make up his mind. 

“It’s only been a few days that I’ve even known him, dude, and I can easily say that if he walked down those stairs and asked me if I wanted to date him, I’d say yes in a heartbeat. I need more time to figure everything out, but...I’ll keep you posted. Did he tell you about his bet?” Roxas took his hit and gave his friend a chance to answer him. 

“A little,” Demyx gave him a look that said he was dying to hear more, however, so Roxas handed over the glassware as he went on. 

“Did he tell you one of his stipulations was that he takes me out on a date?” Demyx’s answering, mischievous grin told Roxas that the taller blonde knew more than he himself did. 

“He might have- oh,” Demyx stopped himself short as the sound of a door opening and closing was heard. He busied himself with clearing out the bong and loading another bowl, when Roxas was struck with the realization that he didn’t know what the redhead did for a job. 

“Where does he work?” Roxas asked curiously, unsubtly changing the subject. Demyx laughed, tugging the neckline of his shirt to the side to reveal a tattoo of ocean waves encased in a circle above his heart, identical to the custom artwork on the drum kit across the room. 

“He’s finishing up his apprenticeship at a tattoo parlor,” Demyx said, almost proudly. “He’s been there almost a year, and I think he’s only got a handful more pieces to finish before he gets to work there as an artist.” 

“It’s called The Door to Darkness,” Axel added, strolling into the room fully dressed but still toweling his thick locks dry. The spikes of red were apparently a natural occurrence; they were already starting to re-form as he rubbed the towel over his hair. “Come by sometime if you want some free ink, I still need to find three people willing to let me put something on them for my portfolio. 

“Oh hell yeah! Are you serious?” Roxas exclaimed excitedly. He’d always wanted to get something done, but age and then money had hindered him. Axel’s eyes sparkled as he nodded. 

“You’d have to pick one of my sketches, or tell me what you want and let me draw something up,” he said, taking the bong from Demyx and hitting it hard twice. “But text me, I gotta run, I’m already late.” Then he handed the bong to a still smiling Roxas, blew him a kiss with a wink, and dashed out the door. Demyx sighed, but with a teasing smile ghosting across his face before pretending to become serious. 

“See, That right there is not like Axel at all. I had to cough up a hundred munny for mine, and he treats me like family,” he said with a shake of his head while Roxas lit the bowl up. “If those are the perks of dating him, then I’ve changed my mind; instead of setting him up with you I’m just gonna date him instead.” He laughed until Roxas hit him in the face with a pillow from the couch. “I’m so kidding. No thank you, I’m not barking up that tree, even if it would mean free tattoos. He’s all yours, Rox.” Then he cocked his head, and with a devious sparkle in his eye, asked, “or can I call you ‘Roxy,’ too?” 

“You do and you die,” Roxas replied, slugging him lightly on the shoulder, then handing over the glassware. “Hey, speaking of things that aren’t free, can I go ahead and buy a bag from you? I can’t keep freeloading off you forever, I gotta go home eventually.” Demyx nodded, but then sighed and let out a chuckle. 

“Yeah, but if you end up here all the time like I’m hoping, I’m gonna have to write you up a bill like I do for Axel; he just throws in once a month to help cover my personal stash. Obviously at a discounted rate,” he finished with a wink, passing Roxas a bag that, although he hadn’t watched Demyx weigh it, looked a little large to be an eighth. “Got twenty munny on ya?” 

“Man, are you sure? I don’t want to be taking advantage of you here or putting you out,” Roxas said, standing and digging the munny out of his pocket but still hesitant to take the bag. He wanted to be treated like a friend, not make Demyx think he was only here for the bud. Although, since he had still not found a source of income, he could really use that price cut. Demyx gave him a dismissive wave and a smile. 

“No, come on, Rox. Giving you my ‘family discount’ isn’t gonna run me out of business,” he cracked. “Door’s always open, my dude, and the gang meets up here every night. Though you might need a day to recoup,” he said somewhat sympathetically, and Roxas agreed wholeheartedly. 

“I really do. My bed’s gonna feel SO nice,” he said emphatically. “I’m gonna head out, bro. Thanks for everything.” Demyx nodded, yawning hugely. 

“Yeah, I’ll see you. Text me! I’m gonna go back to bed now,” he mumbled, already propping his pillow up on the armrest and stretching out on the couch. Roxas made his exit, and his mind was spinning the whole walk home. He felt overloaded both mentally and emotionally after the events of the last forty-eight hours, and he definitely needed some time to process everything. Without talking to Axel, he was stuck in limbo involving their date, but Axel wasn’t wasting any time on wearing down Roxas. If he wanted more than just the one date, or possibly two as Axel had implied, then he was going to have to quickly figure out how to brush off the other male’s advances. Demyx had made it clear he would be working towards the same goal Roxas had just realized that he had; to convince the redhead that he wanted to settle down for a while, and preferably with Roxas. That was now the clear focus for him; to figure out how to change Axel’s mind. He wanted to know him, to spend time with him, to enjoy more things together. As fantastic as he could only imagine being intimate with Axel would be, he wanted it to be just that; intimate. Not just something he shared with anyone who caught his attention, but something that he opened himself up to give. Roxas wanted exactly what Axel didn’t want to give, and Axel wanted exactly the opposite. At least as long as Roxas could keep himself in control, he would have time on his side to work on his project. Although he knew he’d seen only the beginnings of what Axel was going to do to ‘shamelessly flirt and charm him into bed,’ or whatever he had said. Okay, he could at least build off of all that; he had a starting point to work on, at least. Once his mind had settled itself into that purpose, though, it was available to wander back to that kiss, or at least what he could remember of it. 

By the time the flashes of Axel began in his head, he had reached his front door, so it was with a faraway look in his eye and a dreamy, infatuated smile that he greeted Sora and Kairi, who were curled up on the couch together watching their favorite sitcom. 

“Woah, have a good night last night?” Sora asked, giggling, while Kairi rolled her eyes. 

“Demyx said he was babysitting, so why do you look like I’m going to disown my brother?” Kairi asked sharply, and Roxas could almost see her itching to tear into Demyx, or Axel, or Roxas, or all three of them at once, so he quickly held up his hands in submission, signaling he wasn’t going to be withholding. 

“Don’t jump the gun here, Kai, I need you in a good mood. Can I go take a quick shower before we get into it? I’ve got all day if you guys don’t have plans,” he looked from one to the other, Sora shrugging with a nod and Kairi giving an exaggerated sigh. 

“Fine, but only because now I need to make those two idiots spill, too,” she said, already hunting around for her phone. Roxas made his escape, slipping away to the safety of his room to grab a towel and a change of clothes before heading to the welcoming shower.


	10. Chapter Ten

“So that’s where I’m at,” Roxas said, leaning back onto the far armrest of the couch from where his roommates were cuddling. He had come back from his shower, sat down, and proceeded to smoke them out while filling them in on everything that had happened to him since he had gone to Demyx’s after his first day in Art History, including that part mostly for Sora’s benefit since Kairi had at least minor knowledge of the events. He finally concluded after Axel had offered him free tattoo work and left. For the majority of his recounting, the pair had remained silent, with Sora ‘ooh’ing, gasping, and laughing at points and Kairi only asking minor, clarifying questions when necessary. “I really like him, like more than I should for only knowing him for a few days. I’d like to get him to go out with me, ultimately. And...need I say anything else? You know him, he’s your brother. You already tried to warn me, I know this is my own stupid fault, but I clearly can’t help myself around him,” he hastily added the last sentence when he saw Kairi’s mouth opening with an ‘I told you so’ written in her eyes, and she closed it with chagrin. “I know what you told me, I know what Demyx told me, I know what AXEL told me, but do you think you could help me out?” At his words, Sora let out a huge ‘awh’ and looked pleadingly at Kairi on his friend’s behalf, but Kairi only had the shadow of a smile on her face. 

“Rox, I’ve got two important things to say. The first...Rox, I don’t know how likely this is going to be, no matter what Demyx thinks. I’d like it to happen, BELIEVE me, I want Axel to be happy more than anyone in the world, but...has anyone told you that Axe and I grew up living with our uncle Reno?” she asked suddenly, seeming to change subjects abruptly. When Roxas shook his head mutely, she continued. “When I was just a few years old, my parents went through something that destroyed our family, and we ended up with my uncle. I was too little to really understand what was going on, but Axel was like six and I know he remembers what happened, even though he absolutely refuses to talk about it under any circumstance. I just honestly don’t know if it’s realistic to expect him to overcome this childhood trauma and the mindset it gave him. I hope he can someday, but just looking at this realistically, you should go into this knowing the odds are severely stacked against you. Which brings me to my second point; maybe Demyx is right and you’re the best shot we have at getting him to consider changing things up, and I like you a lot, enough to want you to be happy, too, so...I’m in,” she giggled as Sora let out an excited whoop of joy and Roxas sighed in relief, sagging back onto the couch like a puppet who’s strings had been cut. The brief history lesson on Axel and the implications it had he would have to store away to dwell upon later; for now, he wanted advice, direction. 

“Kairi, what do I DO?” he asked pathetically, looking to her with a desperate frown. It was her turn to sigh, exasperatedly. 

“You’re worse than a teenage girl,” she grumbled, but with a smile, so Roxas knew she wasn’t too put-out. He handed her a freshly loaded bowl and she distractedly lit it, seeming to be thinking hard. 

“Alright, hun, we’re gonna test how well I know Axel. If nothing else, this will let me know if I’m on the right track,” she said with growing enthusiasm. “Grab your phone, we’re gonna text him. I’m not helping you flirt with him, because ew, but I’m going to try something. Ready?” Roxas held up his phone, thumbs poised to type, and she instructed, “okay, hit him up about that tattoo. Do you actually want to get a tattoo? Right now he should be in full-on sketch mode and will be ready to take a break, which I bet he’ll do when he sees you text.” Roxas began typing out a message to Axel while she was still speaking. 

Saturday 11:57 A.M. 

You: were you seriously offering free tattoo work? Because I’m not afraid to take you up on that. 

He sent the text and then looked expectantly at Kairi, who was taking the pipe back from Sora to pass to Roxas. He was going to call it quits after this one or he’d end up back at Demyx’s place tonight anyway, he thought to himself amusedly while he hit it. Kairi was talking again, though, so he hurried to focus his attention. 

“Give him enough time to grab a cigarette and head outside and I bet-“ but was interrupted by the sound of Roxas’ phone pinging that it had received a new message. “Here we go. Respond to whatever he says, then give me your phone. Babe, hit play?” Kairi instructed both males, who quickly obeyed. As the sounds of ‘The Office’ resumed, Roxas opened the text. 

Saturday 11:59 A.M. 

214-898-1305: you will not owe me a single munny 

214-898-1305: do you know where you wanna get one? I’ve got a few specific things I still need to do, but I wouldn’t mind any piece of you that you give me to work on ;) 

You: mmhmm, I’m sure, lol. What do you still need to do? 

Roxas sent the message with an eye roll at the cheesy redhead, then dutifully handed his phone over. Kairi set it on her lap and then placed her attention onto the TV. Roxas followed her gaze, trying to discern which episode they were on. Oh, this was a good one; the characters were having a beach day during which they would go through a hilarious set of challenges to determine who the new manager of the office would be. When he heard the ding of his phone, he held out his hand for his phone, but Kairi kept her eyes on the TV and ignored him. He looked at her curiously, and then looked back to the TV again. His phone went off a second time, and it still earned no shred of attention from Kairi. After another minute or so, Kairi held out the phone. 

“Send a reply, then reply to whatever he says after that, then give it back,” came her command, and Roxas had the messages open as soon as he grabbed his device from her palm. 

Saturday 12:05 P.M. 

214-898-1305: well, I still need a shoulder piece, a back piece, and at least four inches on a forearm, if not larger 

214-898-1305: if those are too scary though, I really will take anything you’ll let me do. I only need a handful more pieces til I’m done 

Saturday 12:12 P.M. 

You: hmm...what would the shoulder piece entail? 

214-898-1305: I need to cover at least six inches. I have a few sketches worked out for that you could look at...but the more I think about it, the more I think I need to draw up something new for you to look at 

214-898-1305: do you trust me? 

You: not in the slightest, but I’m willing to hear you out. Why? 

The phone buzzed a reply had come through while Kairi was still holding it, yet she repeated the process of laying it in her lap and completely ignoring it. Roxas ground his teeth and tried to get into the show so he wouldn’t snatch the phone right back from his roommate. Two more texts came through in the time she held his phone hostage, the duration of which seemed a lot longer than the previous one, but once again she returned it. 

“One reply this time,” she said, and Roxas was reading. 

Saturday 12:18 P.M. 

214-898-1305: could I draw you up a tattoo on my own? 

214-898-1305: before you tell me what you want, I mean 

214-898-1305: and you can always turn me down and have me redraw you something after you see it. 

Saturday 12:27 P.M. 

You: oh man that’d be dope. Will you tell me what you had in mind? 

Roxas returned his phone with a grumble, and Kairi finally looked away from the show, Sora following suit with interest. 

“See, right now, Axel is probably wrapping up his break, and is probably driving himself crazy wondering why you aren’t texting him right back. If I let you, like you would normally, he would be the center of attention as usual and you’d fall into his normal, expected routine of flirting with you. This way, he’s getting thrown off his game.” The phone pinged, and she held it up, not offering it to Roxas but acknowledging it, at least. “I bet the text you just got was his reply to whatever you said, but the NEXT text...if I know Axel, that will be the text where he asks what’s taking your attention away from him, and you will have successfully gotten him to want to know more about what’s going on with you rather than what he wants to talk about, and while that isn’t really a big breakthrough, it will at least show me that I still know how his mind works.” As she finished speaking, the phone did indeed beep again, and she handed the device to Roxas. “Wanna see if I’m right?” Roxas opened up the texts and shook his head, a smirk spreading across his face as he saw Kairi’s work in progress. 

Saturday 12:32 P.M. 

214-898-1305: you’ll just have to wait to see it, gorgeous. Tattoos always look better than described. 

214-898-1305: so what are you up to? Still at my place? 

Roxas showed the pair the reply, and Sora gave a little cheer, offering a high-five to his girlfriend. Kairi returned it while winking at Roxas in a pale imitation of her brother. 

“Wonderful, now we know I’ll be useful in this endeavor. Now come scoot over here, you’re gonna send him a selfie with us in it.” She instructed his pose, putting him, smiling and holding up the camera with his roommates behind him and over his shoulder. It wasn’t til after he’d sent it that he realized that while he and Sora has big grins on their faces, Kairi was looking directly into the camera with an eyebrow raised, as if sending Axel a warning. Oh well, too late now. The more important part, at least to Roxas’ enamored mind, was that he looked pretty decent if he did say so himself. Axel apparently agreed. 

Saturday 12:39 P.M. 

214-898-1305: mmm, well don’t you look good ;D 

214-898-1305: maybe not my sister, tho. Am I in trouble? 

214-898-1305: oh gaia, what are y’all doing? 

Roxas let out a little giggle as he finally decided to save Axel’s contact info before he responded- he’d been left as just a number long enough, and as silly as it was, he wanted to see Axel’s name flash up on his screen. As he finished, he relayed Axel’s questioning to the pair. Sora laughed, hugging Kairi to himself briefly, while she gave Roxas a knowing look and a smile. 

“I’m just sending him a subtle reminder that he never texted me and that I heard all of this from YOU,” she said sweetly, and Roxas was glad not to be in Axel’s shoes. 

Saturday 12:42 P.M. 

You: we’re...catching up? ;p and Kairi isn’t very happy that she’s catching up with me and hasn’t heard from you, soo be ready for THAT 

Axel: oh gaia 

Axel: if I go missing, please point people in her direction 

You: I don’t think they’d buy it, she’s so sweet and tiny 

Axel: hey man, that’s what I thought about YOU, and just look at all the trouble you tuned out to be ;) 

You: shut it, red 

Axel: so about that date...can we talk about that yet? 

Axel: when are you free, cutie? 

Roxas felt himself blush, and of course that didn’t go unnoticed by his couch mates. Sora nudged Kairi with his elbow. 

“Look at him, Kai. I think your brother’s causing trouble,” he chuckled, and Kairi huffed. 

“What’s he saying now? Or do I not want to know?” She made a face, clearly trying NOT to imagine what they could be saying to each other, and Roxas let out a derisive snort. 

“No, you goofs, he’s asking me about that date,” he said, sticking his tongue out at her. 

“Wait a little while, at least,” came the unexpected advice from Sora, and the other two shot him a look. He threw his hands out defensively towards Kairi, “What? He should. If Axel’s problem is him only staying interested in someone for a short period of time, don’t play his game,” he said, turning to Roxas for the last part. “Draw it out. If you go over there or see him, fine, but schedule your date like days or weeks from now. Make him wait.” The words...actually made sense. Kairi’s face mirrored his own, full of surprise and chagrin. 

“That’s actually really solid advice, Sor. Thanks,” Roxas chuckled, returning his attention to his phone. 

Saturday 12:52 P.M. 

You: any chance we could set a date later? Since it’s the start of classes and I need to job hunt, the like earliest possible I could do would be like Thursday and even then idk what will be going on 

Axel: Yeah, we can do that 

Axel: but I hope I’ll get to see you between then and now ;) 

You: unless you come to class with me, Mondays and Wednesdays are a no-go. I’m there til 8 at night. 

Axel: good to know 

Axel: any particularly interesting classes to sit through on those days? 

You: not unless you’re into poetry, astronomy, or math 

You: I’m only doing core requirements this semester. 

Axel: ew math. I’m so glad I’m wrapping things up. I like only heading up to campus to work on art lol 

You: you’re really good, by the way. I never got the chance to tell you that sketch was super dope 

Axel: yikes. You know, that wasn’t intended to find it’s way to you. 

Axel: thanks, though. You’ve been on my mind, what can I say ;) 

“Alright, alright,” Kairi spoke up, breaking into the little bubble Roxas had sunken into. “Tell him to get back to work. Spend a little bit of time WITHOUT my brother on your mind.” 

“We’re gonna order sushi!” Sora enthused, smacking his lips exaggeratedly. “And I need to head up to the Square for a minute anyway, you could tag along if you want!” Roxas felt a smile touch his face. The Square was what everyone in town called the island’s technical center; there was some historic statue in a little, tiny green space, and surrounding it were the newest, trendiest places to hand. Bars, restaurants, shops, and even a small movie theatre spread out from around the little square roundabout, as it was the most popular place in town, especially when tourist season hit. Roxas has still yet to go, but had heard so much about it that he already knew several of the places nearby by name and reputation. 

“Sure, why not? I really should shut off for a while,” Roxas said, knowing that if he was going to take Sora’s advice, he couldn’t just be glued to their conversation the whole time. Sora stood, so he sent one more text before rising as well and following the brunette out the door, both waving goodbye to Kairi on their way out. 

Saturday 1:14 P.M. 

You: yeah, well, hope I still am by the time we set a date, then. Can’t stand me up on your first date. Anyway, Kairi says get back to work, and I’m about to head to the square with Sora, so I’ll see ya, Red. Draw me something awesome :p


	11. Chapter Eleven

Kairi had been discreetly texting since Roxas had begun speaking; Demyx had responded to her initial message and the two were deep in conversation about the events of the past few days, and the implications behind them. Once the two boys had left, her phone was out in her hands and the sole focus of her attention. 

Saturday 1:15 P.M. 

Demyx: Yeah well, I still say he’s the best chance we have. You saw his sketch, since when does he draw people he doesn’t adore? 

You: alright, fine, moot point. We both said we’re gonna help Rox, so Axel’s opinion no longer matters ;p 

Demyx: bet. What do you want me to do, o great tiny one? 

You: did he say anything to you about their date? I have him backing on and off texting, and Sora had the brilliant idea to postpone their date a little while, because I’m sure that sweetie would have let Axe talk him into going out tonight or tomorrow 

You: you know, we’re fighting against BOTH of them lol 

Demyx: dear gaia, do I know. Did he tell you he was yelling at me to ‘give him back’ because he ‘wasn’t done with him yet’?? 

You: NO, omg that’s great. This is gonna be fun 

Demyx: yes, yes it is. But to answer you, not anything specific. He does seem to care, though. He asked me about my favorite part of a relationship. The drunk asshole. 

Kairi grimaced for her friend. Demyx had found Axel as a roommate at the end of their freshman year after moving out of the place he and his significant other had lived, but he never talked about it except that it had been a horrible breakup that had come as a huge surprise; he found out they had been cheating and had all his things out by that afternoon. To have Axel drunkenly questioning him about his favorite parts, despite it having been several years ago, would still probably have stung a bit. But... 

Saturday 1:20 P.M. 

You: I’ll take that as a good sign 

You: I’m sorry tho :( 

Demyx: Yeah, well. And yeah, that’s what I thought. 

Demyx: Hey Kai, I got people here. Anything in particular I should do until I check in next? 

You: keep him thinking about Roxas, maybe away from the bars. When was the last time y’all had a poker night? 

Demyx: good thinking, tiny. Lux’ll be down, I bet I can talk everyone into it. I’ll keep you posted 

You: ttyl Dem! <3 

With that finished and nothing better to do, she pulled up the menu for their favorite sushi place and perused it, thinking about trying something new. Harryhausen’s always had chef specials that were updated constantly, and everything there was good. After a few minutes, she set the phone down and resumed watching their show; she and Sora had watched ‘The Office’ a thousand times, she knew he wouldn’t be upset. A sudden vibrating sound went off, and Kairi grabbed her device curiously, but it was still dimmed and had no incoming messages. The sound continued, and Kairi quickly jumped up, looking for the source; Roxas’ phone must have slipped out of his pocket, as it lay in the seat he had vacated. Curiosity overtaking her, she picked it up, and saw an unknown number was calling. She couldn’t help herself; she would just take a message. In case it was important or something. 

“Hello?” 

“Oh. Um, hello. I was calling for Roxas?” The sweet, feminine voice on the other end of the line sounded uncertain; she had clearly not expected another girl to answer the call. 

“He left his phone at home. Can I take a message?” Kairi asked brightly, but her words seemed to discourage the girl calling even further. 

“Oh, I just... we were kicking off our study hall group with a trivia night, and I just thought...I’m so sorry to have bothered you. I’m Aqua, will you please just tell him Aqua called? It’s not important. Thank you,” she mumbled quickly, then ended the call. That was...odd. It was almost like she- OH. Kairi snickered to herself, putting Roxas’ phone on the coffee table and picking up her own again. 

Saturday 1:38 P.M. 

You: ask him who Aqua is 

Sora-bear <3: you got it, boss 

Then she waited, tuning back in to ‘The Office’ in the mean time. Poor girl, she clearly was hopeful where Roxas was considered. Then again, Kairi chastised herself, she didn’t know Roxas was gay either until just a few days ago. But her giggles were back when she received a message from Sora. 

Saturday 1:43 P.M. 

Sora-bear <3: he just turned bright red and asked why. Please tell me this chick showed up at our place. 

You: she called. Tell him he should go to trivia night to make up for the fact that I’m sure she thinks he’s dating me. She seemed crushed. >;) 

Sora-bear <3: bhaha poor Roxas 

Sora-bear <3: we’re almost home. I got two more Lethal Frames for my deck! I think by next week I could place for prizes. Roxas picked up an application at the place next door to the comic book shop, that new cafe. I think he’ll get it, the place was packed and we could only see the one woman running the place. 

That would be good. Roxas needed something to excuse himself from all these admirers, she tittered to herself. After just a few more moments, she could hear the boys at the door right before it was opened and their conversation flowed inside with them. 

“So then, if you’ve got enough of those points, your card will automatically trigger; you can’t change anything once the round has started. Then you use the cards as an attack against your opponent...” Oh Gaia. Sora was trying to explain the extremely complex rules of the card game he was obsessed with; they could be on this for days before Roxas would even begin to be able to play competently. 

“Sorry to cut in,” she teased, not sounding sorry in the slightest, “but Rox, you should call your friend back. She was trying to get you to come out to something, I think, and she may not invite you now that she thinks you’re spending time with your girlfriend.” Roxas shot her a playful glare, snatching his phone up from the coffee table. 

“Thanks for that, Kai,” he said, unlocking his screen to call the number back. As it rang, he mouthed, “I hate you,” at her, and she batted her eyelashes at him in response. Then, shaking with silent laughter, she picked her own phone up to show Sora the menu. He leaned over the back of the couch to read over her shoulder and planted a kiss on her cheek. She leaned her head against his as he read, then Roxas began speaking. She pointed out what she wanted as Sora scrolled past and handed her phone to him to finish deciding on his own. He took it and stood upright, walking around the couch to sit beside her, while she shamelessly listened in on Roxas’ side of the conversation. 

“Hey Aqua? Hey, it’s Roxas. I’m sorry, my roommate and I went out and I forgot my phone at home; his girlfriend picked up for me to be helpful,” he shot her a look at this, and she winked broadly. “What’s up?” There was a pause as he listened to the girl; she had clearly regained her confidence and was inviting him out. “When is it? Oh, tonight when? Yeah, that’d be cool. Does it run super late? Tonight was gonna be me recovery night, and... no, no, I’d love to come. I’ll be there. Where is it? Oh rad, my friend was just talking about that place. Sweet, see y’all at six.” 

As soon as he clicked his phone off, as if they had practiced it, Sora ‘ooohhh’ed loudly as Kairi giggled, “Roxas, you have a date?” Roxas scowled at both of them, only encouraging their laughter. 

“If you two nosy dorks must know, no, she has a study group she invited me to going and they’re kicking off the semester with trivia night at the bar. It’ll be a handful of people, definitely not a date.” 

“Of course, bro. So, how do you know her?” Sora asked innocently, and Roxas shifted uncomfortably. 

“She started talking to me at the bus stop and catches me whenever we run into each other. Which means nothing except that she’s friendly and lives in our complex.” Kairi chuckled as Sora winked at Roxas. 

“Yeah, man. Whatever you say.” Then, stomach putting an end to the teasing, he asked, “have you had Harryhausen’s yet? It’s awesome. Kairi has the menu pulled up,” and passed her phone to the blonde. As he searched for something to order, Kairi watched him closely. She had only known him for a short time, and Axel was so stuck on his mindset...she sure hoped her roommate would turn out to be worth the work she and Demyx were going to be putting in for him.


	12. Chapter Twelve

Demyx had hit up Luxord first, pitching the idea to his most likely ally and getting an immediate affirmation. Next was Marly, who he could usually convince of his plans. Marluxia seemed surprisingly agreeable, as well. After that, between him and the pink-haired man, they set it up with the group. Finally, he messaged Axel. 

Saturday 4:57 P.M. 

You: hey man, poker night tonight, our place? 

Roommate: ...is it already all set up? Do I even have a choice? 

You: everyone’s in, luxys gonna run it of course. We gotta get him before he’s back on at work. 

Roommate: ah, fine, sketches can wait. I can stand to take a little of y’alls money 

Roommate: could you pick up the beer though? I’m gonna stay here a little late today. Just another hour or two. I promise I’ll be there. 

You: sure sure man, seeya then 

Demyx had a few hours to kill, then, so he sat at his drum kit, which hadn’t been getting the attention it deserved. Marluxia had arrived, Saïx in tow, at around six, but their pink-haired friend knew where he kept his weed and left the pair to themselves, still wrapped up in his music. It wasn’t til Luxord arrived a half an hour later, cards in hand and an excited grin on his face, that Demyx decided to give the sticks a rest. Stretching, he walked to the couch and took the bong from Saïx, who held it willingly towards him. Hitting it deeply, he sighed the smoke out on his exhale. 

“Damn I needed that. It’s been too long,” he said contentedly, and Luxord chuckled deeply. 

“You’ve still got it, my friend. Card table still out back from last time?” he inquired eagerly, clearly ready to get going. Demyx gave a vague wave and nod, and the pierced man went off to get it. He quickly returned, setting up the fold-out picnic table and beginning to drag chairs towards it. Demyx stood to help, but surprisingly, it was Saïx who stood quickly and pushed him back into his seat. 

“We’ve got it,” he said shortly, going to go pull more chairs from the front room. Demyx shot Marluxia a wide-eyes look, but the man just looked at him innocently. 

“What? We all spend so much time here. Put him to work,” he laughed, and took the bong from Demyx to load. Still feeling suspicious, it didn’t take more than a few seconds to understand the blue-haired man’s motives when Axel’s voice could be heard from the entry way; he must have heard the door open, signaling his roommate’s return home. 

“You know me, Sai, nothing’s gonna change. We’re just adding a new member to the gang,” he said, strolling into the living room tailed by Saïx, who was lugging a few fold-out chairs with him. Demyx’s eyes narrowed. This was a new development. Axel waved to the assembled group, heading straight for his spot by Demyx. As he was passed the bong, he looked to Demyx, smiling. “After this, I have some sketches I want you to take a look at,” he said in a slightly quieter voice, and Demyx nodded in response. Then, Larxene made her entrance, tailed by Lexaeus and Xigbar as usual. 

“What’s up, losers? So nice of you to let us back over, Axel,” she said sarcastically, eliciting a grin from Axel that contained bared teeth. 

“Don’t you like Roxas?” Demyx asked in confusion, interrupting the two, but Larxene didn’t even take her eyes off Axel as she responded. 

“Haven’t decided yet...I think what intrigues me more is what you see him,” she said, still speaking to Axel, and gave him a wink when he snarled at her. “Poor Axel. He’s clearly not as willing to crawl into bed with you as you wish. I wonder if he’ll pick someone else in the interim,” she mused, and Demyx jumped in before Axel lunged at her. 

“Shut it, Larx. Y’all ready to lose some money?” he said, rising and positioning himself between the two as he did so. Axel’s eyes still sparkled with fury, but realizing he wouldn’t do anything, he hissed and went to sit at the table. Luxord clasped his shoulder as he walked by, and that seemed to take some of the fury out of him, as well. Larxene cackled wickedly, grabbing herself a seat at the opposite end of the table and looking around pointedly. 

“Where IS the sweet little thing? Or is it just us tonight?” she asked, voice dripping with feigned concern. Another snarl ripped through Axel, his knuckles going white as his hands clenched into fists. Luckily, the normally quiet Lexaeus was the one who interceded this time with a laugh. 

“Probably sleeping off the alcohol poisoning he’s been working towards. The kids only like forty pounds and I hear he’s been playing with the big dogs,” he said with a joking smirk towards Axel. The redhead relaxed, and so did Demyx. Larxene was such a bitch. With the tension diffused, Xigbar was dispatched to pull the beers from the fridge while everyone else grabbed a spot at the table and Luxord began dealing out cards. They started out betting a few munny at a time, but as the night progressed and the less-serious players began to drop out, the stakes rose. Marluxia and Lexaeus were deep in conversation on the loveseat, the pink-haired male having switched to red wine at some point. Demyx was still sitting at the table, but had tapped out, too, and was absently spinning a munny on the table in front of him as he watched the players. Saïx was frowning at his hand, and Luxord, who had traded Lexaeus as dealer so he could play, was grinning broadly. Larxene seemed to be more focused on her phone than the game, but was still in, as was Axel, who seemed more focused on his drink than anything else. As Saïx threw his cards down on the table and stalked off to find the bong, Larxene seemed to come to life. 

“So how much do you even know about your little loverboy, Axe?” she asked, reigniting the tense conversation that had died out over the course of the evening. Demyx groaned, letting his head drop down onto the table. Why did they even hang out with her? 

“Not much, Larxy, just like all the others. He’s another toy, nothing more. Just making me work harder for it this time,” he replied disinterestedly, swirling his beer around in his bottle and then tossing a few more money into the pile in the center of the table. “Sorry to be so boring. I know you really wish you could find something to needle your little claws into, but I really don’t need someone else who wants more from me than I feel like giving. So go die.” Luxord tossed his munny in as Demyx shot a look towards his roommate. Woah, the redhead had gotten way more into his own head than Demyx had expected, and the words seemed more truthful than they would have earlier in the day. He winced on his blonde friend’s behalf. Larxene didn’t take the bait, however, but tossed in her own munny and leaned over onto her arms on the table. 

“Oh, really? You wouldn’t mind if someone else beat you to your prize? Come on, Red, I know you better than that,” she goaded, and Axel ground his teeth. As cards were revealed and Luxord drug the munny towards himself, Axel regained his composure. 

“Sure, but it wouldn’t be a big deal. I’m competitive, but he’s not mine; I don’t WANT him and his feelings and all the strings that come with that,” he scoffed, throwing back what was left of his drink. Larxene held out her phone as if showing the screen to everyone present. 

“Good, because I want to hear everyone’s bet on who he DOES take home with him,” she giggled evilly. Demyx was the closest to her; he was able to get a good view of the outheld photo before the chaos broke out. Roxas was sitting at a table in a dimly lit room that was probably a bar, face illuminated clearly by neon lights. Sitting with him were four people, one female and three males, and all of them were laughing with drinks in hand. If he hadn’t been so close to the situation, if he didn’t know Roxas, he would have jumped on that bet; the males were all objectively fairly attractive, but one of them was FUCKING HOT and Demyx wanted to grab his own phone to hit Roxas up for his own setup. Before he even had a chance to really finish that thought, however, Axel got a good look at the picture. 

“What the FUCK, Larx!” came his voice as a thundering roar before the room seemed to explode around him. Cards, bottles, and swirling colors flashed before Demyx’s eyes, and it took him just long enough to realize that Axel had flipped the table before everything came crashing down. The redhead was already halfway down the hall by the time the sounds had faded hollowly into the air, and after the front door slammed with an echoing bang, the house was encased in complete silence as all eyes turned to Larxene. 

“I’ve got a companion who’s serving drinks at that new bar. Roxas showed up with a few people for trivia night,” she said, eyes locked with Demyx’s alone as she spoke. “Axel is my friend, too, despite how much of a dick he is. I know what y’all are trying to do, and you’re working too slowly. I just helped...speed things along. You’ll thank me for this later,” she sniffed, and flounced her way out of the house. Oh yeah, that was why they kept her around. 

“I knew she was scheming something up, she was too quiet,” came the deep, slightly stunned bass of Xigbar’s voice. Demyx sighed. 

“Would y’all pick up what you can of this?” he pled with a wave of his hand at the destruction. “I’m gonna go hunt down the idiot.” With that, he headed out in the wake of the redhead to find his friend. 

It didn’t take him very long to find Axel. Since the campus itself was non-smoking, one of the hotspots to grab a quick cigarette between classes was a narrow alleyway between a coffee shop and Axel’s favorite art supply store right across the street from the art building. It was also a corner that led to a little cluster of college bars that were rowdy and overcrowded at the best of times, and became a great place to pick a fight once the sun had gone down. Sure enough, Demyx found the redhead bumming a smoke from someone at the mouth of the alley, flame from a borrowed lighter illuminating his face drastically. Green orbs burned into him as he heard his friend thank the shadowy figure and step back out into the light from the streetlamp. 

“Thought you said you wouldn’t care, he’s just another one of your playthings,” Demyx teased quietly, watching the cigarette twitch between Axel’s lips as they tightened into a hard line. 

“Why, Dem. Why do I care?” he asked tonelessly, then looked back to Demyx’s eyes intently. “Why does it matter who he’s with? Why DO I care? I don’t want to care,” he said pleadingly, as if begging Demyx to explain his own feelings. Demyx shot him a look full of pity. 

“Feelings can suck, sure, but you can’t avoid them forever. I’m honestly surprised you have for this long,” Demyx said, then changed direction. “I wanna ask him who his hot friend is, dear Gaia,” he swooned, fanning himself. He really couldn’t stop thinking about the brief glimpse he had gotten of the slender, slate-haired male’s profile next to Roxas. When Axel turned an angry, accusing stare on him, he backtracked quickly. “They’re having trivia night, Axe. They’re just friends enjoying a game, he’s not out there meeting strangers in bars.” Axel grumbled, but seemed placated by the words. “Since when are you one to get jealous, though?” Demyx continued, and the haunted look Axel gave him filled him with empathy. 

“I don’t know,” Axel all but whispered, staring off into the space in front of him and dragging at the cigarette, lost in thought until he was down to the filter. When he threw it away, Demyx threw an arm around his shoulder and started pulling him in the direction of their house. 

“Come on, man. I’m confiscating your phone. Let’s smoke til you pass out; you can call him in the morning if you’re still heartsick.” Axel followed him, still silent, and Demyx was worried for a long moment. When Axel finally spoke, his voice was so subdued Demyx almost missed it. 

“Dude, I can’t...I don’t know what to do. I can’t be in a relationship. And I can’t just back off and leave him alone. Am I losing my touch? How is he the one person I can’t get to sleep with me? That would solve all this.” 

“I don’t know about that, Axe,” Demyx said dubiously, rubbing his friend’s shoulder.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

When Roxas walked into The Snuggly Duckling, he was pretty nervous; the horrendous fake I.D. Sora had loaned him wouldn’t have fooled anyone for a second. However, the monster of a human being standing by the door just nodded at him as he walked hesitantly inside. Once in, he found Aqua quickly enough; she and a few friends were sitting at a high table in the back corner of the seated space, but she stood, waving her hand at him to get his attention. He sighed, glad to not have to awkwardly search for her, and wove his way through the other tables and patrons to reach them. Already seated with her were two males, one a very tall, muscular brunette and the other a silver-haired guy who was taller than Roxas, but paled in comparison to his friend. His startlingly clear cerulean eyes stool out, however, as he said hello in a quiet, soothing tenor. The brunette nodded in welcome as well, but they left the introductions to Aqua, as she had started speaking the second Roxas was in a seat. 

“Oh I’m so glad you could come out! These guys are all my best friends, it’s the four of us who started the study hall in the first place. This is Terra,” she indicated towards the brunette, “and Riku,” and the silver-haired boy waved at his name. 

“And Zexion,” came a voice from over his shoulder that was quiet and exuded calmness. The man had slate-grey hair covering most of his face but stopping just past his chin, and just barely let aqua eyes peek out from behind it. He held a pitcher of beer and enough glasses for everyone, which he dispersed as soon as he’d stepped up to the table beside Roxas. Then he turned a studious gaze on Roxas that quickly left him feeling like the slightly taller man could read his mind. “I’m so glad to meet you; we’ve all heard a lot.” Behind them, he could hear chuckles from the other two guys as Aqua tinted with a faint blush. 

“You guys are the worst. I’m gonna go sign us in for trivia,” she huffed, striding away towards the bar and leaving pleasant laughter in her wake. Roxas found himself alone with strangers, and his anxious mind made him unable to think of anything to say, but Terra held out a large hand for him to shake. 

“It really is nice to meet you. You’re gonna join in for our evening study sessions?” he asked kindly, and Roxas rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. 

“At least every once in a while? Is that okay?” His question was hesitant, but Riku jumped in to reply. 

“Of course! We’re not there every single night. Come when you want to,” came his friendly reply, and he offered his own handshake. Roxas smiled at the men, some anxiety starting to leave, and was handed a beer by Zexion. The man looked familiar, almost as if Roxas had seen him before, but couldn’t QUITE place it. Zexion spoke, however, obviously noticing his slightly extended stare. 

“Have we met before? I’m sorry if so, but I can’t place your face and you seem like-“ but Roxas quickly spoke up, to lessen the embarrassment of being caught staring. 

“I’ve got it. Are you a T.A.? Or taking Art History 2360?” Roxas asked, now fairly certain that was it. A spark of recognition flickered in Zexion’s eye, and he raised an eyebrow. 

“You were late the first day of class,” he said slowly, awareness dawning on his features. “I do actually remember you.” Roxas laughed self-consciously, but was joined in by the other two, and that was when Aqua made her return. 

“Okay boys, we’re team blue. It seems like there are a lot of people here for trivia night,” she noted, sliding back up into her spot. Terra rubbed his hands together in anticipation, grinning. Aqua set down a small dry erase board and marker that she had been carrying, and she, Terra, and Riku all looked expectantly at Zexion, who sighed. 

“I’m writing for us?” His voice was resigned, as if this was a usual occurrence, and everyone agreed or thanked him at once. He pulled the board and marker towards himself with the barest hint of a smile ghosting around his lips. 

“So Roxas, what are you majoring in? Anything that could help us out?” Riku joked, looking towards him a fraction of a second before the lights flicked off and on a few times, signaling the game was about to start. Riku gave him an apologetic look as people took their seats and a quiet descended on the crowd while a man stepped into the lights shining down on his place. He was older; a short, paunchy man who kept dabbing himself with a handkerchief as if the room were sweltering. 

“How is everyone tonight? Let’s go over the game real quick for all these new faces I see,” he began, looking around the room. “For the first round, each team will have two minutes to answer each question. We’ll take off thirty seconds for round two, thirty more for round three. Then the last and final round will be a speed round, points go to the first team with the correct answer. Any questions? Okay good, then before we begin, let’s have a round of applause for the music tonight brought to us by the talented Mr. Hand.” The room broke out into scattered applause as a light flashed to a man sitting at a grand piano on an small stage, and then the atmosphere became almost palpably excited in the crowded bar. All of Roxas’ table mates were watching the man, waiting eagerly for the start of the game, and Roxas surmised that there must be some kind of big prize for the winner because almost everyone else in the room was doing the same. “Alright, first question of the night, just to wake everyone up: what is Destiny Island’s largest export?” As individual tables’ occupants all leaned their heads in to discuss, Aqua said ‘fish’ at the same time Terra said ‘paopu fruit’. Zexion smirked, already writing, and Riku rolled his eyes to Roxas. 

“Aqua and Zexion basically run the team, and we’re just here for them to bounce ideas off of,” he teased quietly, while Aqua defended her answer. 

“Paopu is the most notable, but it’s not in season for far too long, whereas we export fish all year.” Then Zexion showed the board on which he’d written ‘fish’, clearly backing Aqua. Terra sighed and nodded. And then, when the man called for answers and everyone held their boards aloft, it was clear the majority of the room agreed with Terra. However... 

“You’d think paopu, wouldn’t ya, folks. But it’s actually fish, we export that year round as opposed to the fruit which we only export in season. Alright next question-“ 

The first several questions after that were more topics well out of Roxas’ scope of knowledge; some questions about notable people, history, and geography were all touched on. Roxas was beginning to feel more than a little useless when suddenly he knew an answer. 

“Now lets see who’s awake. What does ICMP stand for?” As everyone went to talk to their teams, a silence fell over Roxas’ table. Aqua’s eyes were wide and panicky as she drew a blank, and even Zexion looked mildly stunned that he couldn’t think of the answer. Riku was clearly trying to listen in the the closest tables, but an air of general frustration was growing amongst other teams, as well. Terra caught the smile beginning on Roxas’ face, and leaned in. 

“You know it?” he whispered hopefully, and Roxas nodded. All eyes focused on him immediately. 

“Internet Control Message Protocol,” he mumbled, Zexion writing furiously behind each word. Then time was called, and of the five tables who even held up their board, only two cheered when the answer was called out. Terra patted Roxas enthusiastically on the back, making the smaller man try to conceal a wince, and Riku bumped a fist against his. Then flew the next question about different types of martial arts, and it was Riku who came up with the answer to that one. By the last round, they were in the lead, beating one other table by a single point but the room at large by a significantly wider margin. They’d finished their first pitcher of beer and were almost done with their second; enough for Roxas to feel great, anxiety from earlier forgotten, but not enough that he was worried he’d end up a mess again. They were all laughing, elated with the taste of victory so close to them, and ready for the next round to start up. “So why IS everyone so intense over this?” He chuckled his question out, still laughing from a comment Riku had made. “What does the winner get?” 

“The winning TEAM,” Aqua emphasized, “gets two hundred munny per player, plus we get entered into the finals that they’ll host later for select teams.” Roxas’ mouth popped open. That two hundred money would sure be useful right about now. Riku was the one who voiced his thoughts, however. 

“Man, that munny’s sure gonna feel nice in these empty pockets,” he said with a laugh, finishing off the beer in front of him and pouring himself another glass. Terra elbowed the silver haired man playfully, and then the room was called back to attention by the host. 

“Okay everyone, speed round! Teams ready?” Once all the tables had signaled to him that they were, he continued, “alright, first question; at what university did professor Robert Callaghan, father of Callaghan’s Laws of Robotics, tenure?” Before the question had even finished being asked, Roxas was hurriedly whispering the answer to Zexion. 

“It’s San Fransokyo Institute of Technology, I’m a thousand percent sure.” Zexion wrote it as he spoke with no hesitation, holding it up as soon as he had scribbled the words. They were given the point, and then on to the next one as soon as everyone had erased their boards. Terra got them another point with some obscure car knowledge, and then they lost two consecutive points to other tables. Tensions were high when the next question came, and Aqua quickly tagged in with historical armor facts. Their main competitors had lifted their card first, however, and they gained the point there. Finally, with everyone on the edge of their seats, the last question was called out. 

“In classic myth, what prophet had the gift of understanding animals?” Without waiting for any of his table mates’ input, despite none of them seeming to have one. Zexion had already begun writing. When he held up the card with ‘Melampus’ written on it, the host signaled a point to them and most of the room broke out into cheers for their win. 

“Way to go, Zexion!” Roxas cheered the man, clasping his shoulder, while Aqua grabbed his hand tightly and beamed. 

“Zex, you did it! Oh Gaia I can’t believe we just won!” The blue-haired girl was jubilant, and the other two males were grinning as well. Roxas felt welcomed, happy, and overwhelmingly content; Aqua and her friends were really good company, and spending time with them was as easy as if they’d all known each other for years. He felt no awkwardness this time when she left them again to go order them another round, Terra following to help her carry. The pair left at the table with him exchanged a quick look, then Riku spoke quickly, almost like they had been waiting for their chance to catch him away from the others. 

“Hey no judgement here whatsoever, but...you’re not into Aqua,” the silverette’s words came out as a statement rather than a question, and Roxas felt a blush beginning to creep up on his face. He shook his head rather than say something that could inevitably get back to the girl and hurt her feelings. He was really enjoying the company; he’d hate for a girl’s crush on him to put an end to that as soon as it had been discovered. Riku nodded, and Zexion took over for him. 

“Or any girl for that matter, we’re assuming...?” Zexion trailed off, clearly hoping Roxas would fill them in himself. He sighed, glanced quickly over to where Aqua and Terra were still trying to gain the bartender’s attention, and then back to the two guys. 

“No, I’m gay. Is that going to be a problem, do you think?” he asked bluntly, budding frustration in his tone. Zexion gave a dismissive snort while Riku just laughed. 

“If it were, we’d both have been kicked out a long time ago,” he chuckled, winking at Roxas. “We’re just...confirming a hypothesis before we dissuade the poor thing. She really does seem to be drawn to you.” Roxas groaned, more to himself than anything, but Zexion again seemed to see right through him. 

“Already dealing with some attraction issues?” he surmised, then surprised the petite blonde by placing a gentle hand briefly on his shoulder. “Don’t worry. By the next time you see her, Aqua will be acting like there was nothing there in the first place. She’s truly a very compassionate, wonderful friend.” Roxas found himself looking up into the man’s eyes gratefully, and Zexion gave him a calm, patient one in return. “We don’t know each other well, but if you need to talk about anything and I could be of any aid, please don’t hesitate to let me know,” he added, and Riku nodded in agreement. 

“Yeah, that goes for me as well. You’re really cool, Roxas, and I’d love to see you around the group more often.” Then, as if hearing his own words in another light, he backpedaled quickly, “and I say that in the most non-hitting on you way possible, oh Gaia, not that I wouldn’t...I just-“ but Roxas jumped in to rescue him from himself. 

“No, man, thanks. Both of you. I...really appreciate that.” That was the moment Aqua arrived back to the table, with Terra and several drinks in tow. As they were passed out, Roxas made eye contact with Aqua. “Thank you,” he said seriously, impossible not to hear the grateful tone in his voice, “for inviting me out and introducing me to your friends. You guys are all super awesome.” She giggled delicately, handing him a glass. 

“I’ll cheers to that. Welcome to our study hall, Roxas,” and everyone lifted their glasses, Roxas included, to touch together before taking a drink. As they all settled into comfortable conversation, the host came by their table, handing an envelope to each of them. 

“Congratulations on your win, folks. This is the prize munny, and if I could get you to write down everyone’s contact phone number on this,” he said, sliding a piece of paper and a pen onto the table, “then we will contact you later regarding the tournament.” Aqua grabbed the pen, quickly writing her name and number down, and passed them around the table. Before she gave it to the man, she looked brightly at Roxas. 

“Oh! Take a picture really quick, Roxas, then you’ll have everyone’s number in case you need it!” Roxas fumbled to pull his phone out, snapping a quick picture while the portly man waited impatiently and then took it quickly once Roxas was done. “That was a good idea, thanks again, Aqua. With that, you guys,” he hopped down from his chair and stood, stretching. “I’m gonna call it a night.” 

As they said their goodbyes and celebrated briefly, Roxas was truly struck by how nice this moment with these people was. He really should attend their study hall whenever he was able to; this was a group of people he would consider himself lucky to have as friends. His whole walk home, headphones in his ears and head down, he had a faint smile left over from the evening. 

Once he’d made it to his apartment from a walk that turned out to be longer than he’d imagined, Roxas fumbled at the door with his keys for a moment before letting himself inside. The lights were all off, but the glow of the TV illuminated Sora and Kairi cuddled together, asleep on the couch. Tiptoeing through the room, he entered theirs; he grabbed their comforter off the bed and returned to drape it over the sleeping pair. Then he finally, after long last, made it to his bed, and threw himself onto it, desperately thankful to feel the familiar comfort. He kicked off his shoes, found his pillow, and was asleep as soon as his head touched it.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

His phone’s beep of an incoming message woke him up before his usual alarm went off. Blearily, he fumbled to reach it. At some point in the night, he had pulled it from his pocket and it was now lost somewhere in his blankets, so he had to go hunting for it. Internally cursing whoever had fully woken him up so early and effectively, he finally found his phone and clicked it open. 

Sunday 7:38 A.M. 

Axel: good morning, gorgeous 

You: it’s Sunday. Why aren’t you still asleep? 

Axel: mmm, does that mean you’re still in bed? ;) 

Roxas leaned back on his pillows, a smile tugging at his lips. Snuggled in his warm bed with nothing pressing to do, he was more than content to snuggle in and talk to Axel...even if he was disgustingly cheerful and flirty and awake. 

Sunday 7:42 A.M. 

You: I might be 

You: because it’s seven in the morning and I wasn’t planning on being up for another several hours 

Axel: hmm, I could come make up for waking you up so early... ;D 

You: ... 

Axel: or I could make it up to you when I get to work. What are you doing today? Have any plans? 

You: not particularly. I need to get some stuff done before class tomorrow, but I can put that off indefinitely lol 

You: did you get something drawn up?? Dude I’m excited 

Axel: you’ll just have to come visit me to find out, won’t you? 

Axel: think you could find a ride out here? I’d love to come pick you up, but then you’d be stuck with me til I get to leave 

Axel: although I’m not really opposed to that idea, if you do wanna hang out 

You: I don’t particularly want to get out of bed just yet, though 

You: I’ll find a ride up 

Axel: I can always take you home ;) 

You: I’m going to be ignoring that wink, because I just might stay for a while. I’ve never been out to that side of town 

You: the Door to Darkness, right? 

Axel: that’s the one. And as much as I love picturing you in bed thinking about me, I’m here and they need me. I’ll see ya Roxy 

You: see you, Red 

Roxas read over their exchange, smiling softly while cursing himself at the same time. He shouldn’t feel so happy that Axel was making his desire known this early in the morning. He was letting himself be happy for something he wouldn’t be getting. He shouldn’t be so pleased, to feel wanted and thought of. He was letting himself attach emotionally to someone who had warned him that wasn’t how things were going to be. And he DEFINITELY shouldn’t allow his thoughts to follow down the ‘what if’ path they were trying to. He groaned, throwing back blankets as he kicked his way out of the bed, and then stood. He needed a shower, especially if he was planning to spend a good amount of time with Axel. And coffee. He headed to the bathroom, cranking on the shower and leaving it to warm up as he then went to the kitchen. Belatedly, he remembered his roommates were asleep in the living room, but as soon as he saw them he went into stealth mode. Tiptoeing to the tiny counter space, Roxas pulled out his favorite mug, popped a pod into the keurig, and got himself ready to go with the push of a button, and then returned to the shower. Viciously pushing away thoughts of Axel and his texts that kept trying to resurface, he took as little time as possible under the running water and then jumped out quickly. Toweling off, Roxas glanced at the time again; it was only eight thirteen. Still way too early to wake up the couple sleeping on the couch, but he was also far too awake to go back to bed and snooze. He deliberated for a few moments, toying with his phone as he walked to his room, then decided to take a gamble; he’d text Ventus. His brother would either be up an about at work or having coffee with their parents, or else he’d still be in bed and would ignore the text til later. He missed Ven; he was the person Roxas had been closest with before he left home, and aside from a very occasional text here and there, they hadn’t really talked in weeks. 

Sunday 8:17 A.M. 

You: hey man, how’s it going? 

He sighed and tossed his phone onto the bed, already trying to think of something else to occupy his time, when it beeped at him almost as soon as it hit the comforter. Roxas sat down on his bed, quickly scooping it up to read his message. 

Sunday 8:18 A.M. 

Stupid Ven: hey yourself! I was actually gonna call you today, I’ve got news for you. Things are going really good over here. How have YOU been? 

You: is it good news? Tell me! Things are...interesting. Exciting? I wish you were still around sometimes, even if you ARE an idiot. It’s a lot to say over txt :/ 

Stupid Ven: which would be better- a call or a visit? ;) 

You: you’re gonna come see me?! 

You: are you serious right now? 

Stupid Ven: that’s my news :D I’m taking the last classes I can here this semester, but it’s time I start working on my degree. That means I’m college hunting, and I figure hey, why not visit DIU? Although I hear the freshman class is pretty weak this year 

You: Ven YOURE COMING HERE?!?! When are you moving? Why haven’t you told me sooner?? 

Stupid Ven: calm down, tiger, I haven’t decided yet. I’m coming to visit you and to check out your school, then continuing with college visits. I have a few options in mind. 

You: oh my gaia dude that’s awesome :D when are you coming? 

Stupid Ven: I decided just to take the one online class, so I guess I could technically come whenever, but the plan is to pop in around November. Can you wait til then to fill me in? 

Stupid Ven: Rox, if you need me, you know I’ll drop everything to help <3 

You: no November will be just fine. Maybe some of this will have worked itself out by then 

Stupid Ven: well, start coming up with things for me to do out there. Your favorite brother will be there soon ;) 

You: oh darn, him too? Idk if I can put you both up for a visit...you might have to find a hotel 

Stupid Ven: gasp. You wound me, little one 

You: man I’m the same size as you 

Stupid Ven: whatever you say, shortie 

Stupid Ven: love you 

You: Yeah, love you too. It was nice to hear from you 

Stupid Ven: you too man 

Roxas stood again, stretching, and decided it was time for that cup of coffee. When he opened the door, however, he found himself face to face with a tired-looking redhead lugging the comforter back to their room. 

“Morning, Rox,” she mumbled, yanking their door open and throwing the comforter in haphazardly. “Thanks for that.” 

“Oh yeah, it was nothing,” Roxas said brightly, following her back to the living room. “Y’all are up early,” he noted as he went to start his coffee after exchanging a nodded greeting with Sora. Kairi huffed, but was struggling to suppress a smile. 

“Yeah, because this bum pushed me off the couch!” she said, trying to sound indignant, but giggled when Sora started tickling her. 

“It was an accident!” the brunette defended himself loudly, then tugged her down onto the couch and stood. “Coffee for the lady?” he asked her with an exaggerated bow, pulling more giggles from the girl before she nodded. 

“Yes please. But anyways, Rox, what are YOU doing up so early? Have a good night last night?” Roxas picked up his mug and moved out of Sora’s way as he tossed the used pod into the trash. 

“Yeah, I really did,” he said, returning to the living room and taking a place on the couch. “I won two hundred munny. And Aqua’s friends were really awesome.” Kairi’s face lit up. 

“Oh that’s great! On trivia? I didn’t even know they gave prizes like that,” she mused, then took the pipe Roxas was holding out for her. After her hit, though, Roxas found himself under her scrutinizing stare. “Why do I feel like you’re subtly trying to soften me up?” she asked, indicating the bowl she was passing to Sora, who had returned with two steaming mugs. Roxas laughed, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment at being called out so soon into his plan. 

“I may have a favor to ask of you guys,” he sheepishly admitted, then brightened up as an idea struck him. “How about I ask over breakfast? I’ll buy donuts,” he singsonged, and that was apparently enough to entice the pair. 

“Donuts!” Kairi exclaimed at the same time Sora did, and then all three burst into laughter. 

“If you’re buying, I think we can probably be convinced,” Sora added, passing the bowl to Roxas with a wink. Once they’d gotten themselves satisfactorily stoned, they headed the little cafe Sora had pointed out to him on the Square when they came last time, Lucky Cat Cafe. He’d actually put in an application there, even though they’d yet to give him a call. When they arrived, they took a table right by the large windows, and once their things were settled, they went to the counter to get breakfast. There was a sweet woman at the register - brunette, on the younger side of middle aged, with a kind face; she was the woman Roxas had spoken with briefly the other day. Once Sora and Kairi had picked out their pastries, Roxas stepped up to order and pay, and the woman recognized him. 

“Roxas, wasn’t it? How are you dear?” she asked enthusiastically, punching some numbers into her outdated register, and then continued before he had a chance to answer, “I was planning on giving you a call soon! If you’re still interested, the job’s yours. I can start you whenever you’re available...and if you say yes, I’ll even give you the employee discount,” the woman added with a wink. Roxas was floored. 

“Oh wow, yeah, that’d be great!” Roxas managed, smiling broadly. “Would Thursday work out? I could come after my morning class.” The woman beamed at him, hitting something on the register that brought the total down significantly. 

“Sounds great, honey,” she replied, taking his munny and dropping it into the til. “You go enjoy your breakfast, I’ll see you Thursday!” Then she bustled off, leaving Roxas to be cheered on by his roommates. 

“Look at that, man, everything’s going your way today,” Sora said, elbowing him while taking a huge bite of his donut. Kairi patted his shoulder, nibbling her tart much more daintily. 

“Speaking of,” she began, lifting a brow at Roxas, who smiled sheepishly in return. 

“So Axel texted this morning,” Roxas started, causing Sora to chuckle and Kairi to to roll her eyes despite her smile. “He asked me to come up to his shop to look at some sketches for a tattoo. Any chance I could catch a ride there with y’all?” Sora tossed the last bite of his breakfast into his mouth and patted his midsection. 

“The tummy says yes. And the girlfriend?” he questioned, looking to Kairi. She stuck her tongue out at both boys. 

“Well duh. Of course, Rox. Are you gonna need a ride home, too?” came her voice, dripping with sweetness. Again, Roxas felt himself rubbing the back of his head embarrassedly. 

“Um, I don’t think so...” he muttered over the sudden chuckling from his friends. Once her laughter had subsided, Kairi took on a mock stern tone and gave him her best ‘mom’ expression. 

“Now, little Roxas, do we need to establish a signal in case you DO need someone to come rescue you from the big, bad Axel?” Sora snorted, and it was Roxas’ turn to roll his eyes. 

“NO, mom, I’ll be fine. We’re probably gonna go back to their place to meet up with everyone, I’d assume. I’m not gonna be alone with him for way too long,” he sighed out, unsure of if that was a good thing or not. Kairi must have seen the feelings on his face, because she reached over and laid her hand on top of his, squeezing it gently for a second before letting him go again. 

“You two will get it together at some point, I’m sure,” she said more sincerely. “When do you wanna go?” Roxas glanced down at his phone; it was now nine forty-three, and he would still need to get ready. 

“I still need to get ready, so after we get back and I get dressed?” Roxas said, and then had a sudden idea, “and maybe we could stop so I could grab lunch? I could take it with me.” Kairi beamed at him, and Sora patted his own midsection. 

“Food’s been working out for you so far,” he joked, “why not continue the trend?” 

Once they’d gotten back, and with only minimal fun being made of him as he tried on a few different shirts, he settled on a checkerboard print tee with a grey vest and headed out the door with both of his roommates. They stopped at a little taco stand at Kairi’s recommendation, and Roxas loaded up with street tacos and salsa and chips; she said it was one of Axel’s favorites. Then they drove to the far side of town, where posh eating establishments and upscale shops were prevalent and scattered amongst them were edgy nightclubs and pop up desert places and fancy art galleries. Then they pulled up in front of a sleek, black storefront, entirely dominated by a huge dark wooden door that was easily twice Roxas’ height and emblazoned with red letters spelling out ‘The Door to Darkness’; Sora stopped the car. It was...intimidating, to say the least. 

“Um,” was all Roxas could say, but as Kairi giggled at him, he sucked it up and gathered his takeout bags, then stepped out of the car. 

“See ya man,” said Sora, already putting the car into gear. 

“Call me if plans change!” Kairi added as the car pulled away, and then Roxas was standing alone in front of the door. He steadied his nerves, then tugged open the huge door. Despite it’s wooden facade, it was light enough for him to open; it must have been hollow, because had it really been made of solid wood it would have taken about four of him to move.The interior of the shop was a wholly different atmosphere than the sunny Destiny Island skies outside; it was well-lit, with polished black floors and light grey walls covered in large-scale framed artworks. There were several smaller booth-like rooms he could see off to the back, and a desk to his left with several large books, presumably with more artwork inside, piles of paperwork, and sitting behind the desk.. 

“Fill out a form,” drawled the redhead in a bored voice without looking up from his phone. He was lounging back, skinny grey jeans ending in chucks propped up on a corner of the desk, clearly not too worried about the impression he was giving off; to be fair, though, it was empty in the shop and very evident that not many people were lining up to get tattoos before lunch. Roxas smirked, and without responding, walked over to the desk and dropped the food down onto it. Axel glanced at the bags out of the corner of his eye, and then took in the blonde behind them; immediately he sat up, tossing his phone onto the desk, and his eyes were exuberant. 

“Roxy! Oh my Gaia, did you bring me lunch? You sweetheart,” he exclaimed, batting his eyelashes playfully at the smaller man. Roxas grinned back at him, resting his elbows on the raised ledge of the desk beside the food. 

“If you aren’t too busy right now,” he said sarcastically, looking behind himself as if someone could be approaching the desk. Axel snorted. 

“Xigbar! I’m taking my lunch, you good?” A man a single golden eye, a black eyepatch, slightly pointed ears, and long black hair that had a few streaks of grey which was tied back into a ponytail poked his head out of one of the booths. 

“Sure, kiddo. You two have...fun,” he said suggestively with a wink. Axel just waved dismissively at him. 

“We’ll be back. He’s my new project,” he said while standing and walking around the desk to where he stood, and Roxas truly couldn’t tell if his answer was meant in response to what his coworker had hinted at or if it were about the tattoo. He followed Axel out the door, carrying the bags to a little bench along the sidewalk nearby, and they sat down. “Really, thank you, this is my favorite place,” Axel said, snagging a taco out of the bag. Roxas dug in to his own with a nod, and the two demolished the spread in record time. When they were done, Axel patted his pockets, frowning. “Shit, I left my cigs in the car. Care to take a walk with me?” he questioned, looking to Roxas. “I’m not very far.” 

“Sure”, Roxas rose, gathering up their now-empty bags and tossing them in an adjacent bin as they went. “So are you gonna tell me about this tattoo or what?” Axel threw him a deeply offended look. 

“Of course not! You’ll have to see it,” he sniffed, then added cryptically, “I hope you like classic video games as much as I do.” That had Roxas thinking, and they walked in companionable silence the rest of the short distance down the same road to get to Axel’s car, parked in one of the prime spots along the curbside. 

“Aren’t these spaces for shoppers?” Roxas teased, leaning up against the side of the car while Axel dug around inside. Axel quickly found the small paper box and lit one of the cigarettes while shutting the car door, then winked at Roxas. 

“I’m here early enough that most of them are empty when I get here, and the nearby shop owners and I have come to an...understanding.” Roxas nodded gravely, despite the spark of laughter still present in his eyes. 

“Meaning you snarled at them til they backed down?” He asked, then gave into his laughter as the redhead sniffed and began to walk back. 

“I don’t snarl. Don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said innocently as Roxas caught back up to him. “Besides, don’t you find my take-charge behavior sexy?” He did, but wasn’t going to admit THAT to the cocky man. 

“Sure, sure, whatever you say,” Roxas said noncommittally, breezing past him to peek into the window of a very upscale looking bistro they were walking past. “What’s in here?” 

“Plates of food that cost more than a new video game,” Axel chuckled when Roxas tripped over himself backing away. 

“Well, if it smells like THAT,” Roxas mused, finding his place back at the redhead’s side. 

“You JUST ate, how are you still hungry?” Axel moaned, patting his belly exaggeratedly. Roxas laughed at him, drifting to the side to bump into him playfully. 

“I may be small, but I’m actually hollow,” Roxas deadpanned, and Axel laughed as he opened and held the door to the tattoo parlor open for the blonde. 

“Honey, I’m hoome,” Axel singsonged as they made it inside. “I’m taking him to the back.” 

“Keep it clean,” came the disinterested voice, and Axel snickered as he led Roxas through a narrow hallway between the booths to what must be a workspace situated behind them. Rows of inks, stacks of papers, a scanner, a printer, and various medical-looking supplies occupied a row of shelves along one wall, and a table with a few chairs sat near a small refrigerator in the back corner. On it were several sketchbooks, pencils, and pens, and as Roxas sat down, he noted that it looked like it was all Axel’s work spread out before them. Axel pulled up a seat opposite him, spinning the chair around and straddling it with his arms crossed over the back. 

“So if it’s too much for you, and you don’t wanna be branded with your habit, then I understand and I can redraw it, or let you look at some of my other sketches,” Axel began, his voice uncharacteristically hesitant, as he shuffled through the papers and pulled one sketchbook to the top. Roxas eagerly took it from him, and his eyes grew huge as he took in the beautiful piece before him. It was video game themed; several prevalent icons and characters from many classic games that Roxas had grown up with forming a circle to surround and frame a 360 controller with a stylized crown sitting askew on top of it. “And if you like it but prefer a different console, I can draw up a different controller in like, two minutes.” Roxas was still taking in the linework, finding different references the more he looked, and as the seconds ticked by Axel seemed to take it as a bad sign. “Here, it’s not gonna offend me if you don’t like it, I have some others sketches up right-“ but Roxas’ raised hand silenced him. 

“Axel it’s AMAZING. It’s perfect, there isn’t anything I’d rather have,” he said slowly, a touch of awe in his voice. Mollified, Axel leaned on his crossed arms and watched Roxas admire his work. After a few more seconds, Roxas looked at his own shoulder, wondering aloud, “So how would it sit on my shoulder?” Axel took the book from his hands, deftly pulling the page away at the perforations, and held it up to his shoulder. 

“It’ll sit right here, with the controller right below the crown of your shoulder here,” he said, lining it up, “and these pieces will wrap around. It’ll be shorter than mine, a true shoulder piece rather than the beginning of a sleeve.” Roxas nodded, trying to picture it. It was going to look SICK, that was for sure. “Of course, the color would come later,” Axel continued, and then gave Roxas a grin that had the smaller man swallowing a gulp. “How are you with pain?” It was Roxas’s turn to smirk. 

“Well, I don’t have any tattoos, but it can’t be much worse than this,” he said, lifting the hem of his shirt slightly to show a massive scar that went from the side of his stomach up and wrapping around his back until it ended below his rib cage. Axel let his breath hiss out from between his teeth. 

“Disregarding that view I can’t wait to see more of; what HAPPENED to you?” Axel said, voice softening at the end. Roxas just laughed. 

“When we were little, Ven and I found some swords of my dad’s, and decided to have a battle. I GUESS he won,” Roxas finished petulantly, crossing his arms in a pout. It took Axel about one second to shake the shocked expression off his face before he roared with laughter. 

“You’re telling me your brother hacked you open with a SWORD and you’re just pissed because you lost your fight?” he managed between bursts of laughter, and Roxas found himself giggling as well. 

“What can I say, I’m a sore loser. That’s why I don’t do it very often,” he said cockily, eliciting more laughter from the redhead. Once he had himself under control, Axel spoke again, eyes shining with anticipation and excitement. 

“Wanna start on it today?” He questioned, and Roxas lit up. 

“Can we? Oh my Gaia I’d LOVE to!” the blonde enthused, hopping to his feet. “Can you do it all today? Oh man I’m so stoked.” Axel beamed at him, then flashed him a doubtful look. 

“Well, time-wise we definitely could, but you might wanna slow your roll and see how you do under the gun,” Axel said with a teasing note to his warning. “If nothing else, we can take a break or two. Let me just get a transfer going,” He took his sketch and grabbed a sheet of some sort of paper off one of the shelves, then took them both to something that looked like a digital scanner, although Roxas was certain that wasn’t what it was. Axel slid the papers into place, hit a button, and the machine whirred to life and began to feed both slowly through itself. 

“What-“ Roxas began, but Axel seemed to understand the curiosity in his voice and began narrating what he was doing. 

“This thing is a thermographic transfer maker. Just feed the drawing and the carbon paper through,” he paused, pulling the sheets out of the machine as they finished, “and voila! Now we can set your design.” He pulled the pages apart with a flourish, revealing a clean sheet with the lines of his sketch, presumably ready to be placed on Roxas. Then, with a devious look in his eyes, he smirked at the smaller man. “Shirt off, Roxy.” With more than a little nervous apprehension, Roxas tugged the garment off over his head and stood awkwardly as Axel made an appreciative sound and prowled towards him. “You know, I’ve dragged it out of you, but I don’t think I’ve really expressed it in so many words; Roxas, you’re absolutely stunning,” he purred as his fingers, somehow suddenly holding an alcohol wipe, began cleaning his shoulder. “You have a light that just shines from you. Draws me in like a moth to flame. I’m no stranger to physical attraction, and that’s definitely there, but you are something else, short stuff.” He stepped back, grabbed the transfer paper, and began lining it up on his shoulder. Trying not to move and mess him up, Roxas swallowed thickly. 

“Um,” he began, struggling to come up with something to say, “thanks? I don’t know about all that, but it’s nice to hear all the same.” Axel began setting the stencil, delicately dabbing it onto his skin once it had touched down correctly. 

“Not gonna say I’m glad you’re not hearing it from everyone, but it’s true all the same,” he murmured as he worked, and Roxas felt himself go red. Before he could think of the right thing to say, Axel was done and stepping back. “Leave that on and come with me,” he said, leading Roxas back out towards the booths. Xigbar was stepping out of a different one when they walked out. 

“Got your room all set up for you,” he called over his shoulder towards the original one he had been in. “That makes us even from last week.” 

“Gotcha,” Axel said vaguely, breezing into the booth the man had come from, Roxas on his heels. The station looked like it was ready to go; there were two different guns out, some ink, and a pack of needles and razors, unopened, beside them. Cellophane covered the chair and armrests, and a pair of gloves lay on the seat of the chair. “Asshole actually did a good job,” Axel muttered to himself as he went to a tiny sink and began to wash his hands. For lack of direction, Roxas just stood there for a few seconds before his eyes fell on a large mirror mounted on a wall. Stepping to it, Roxas tried to see the linework underneath the paper as it would look on his skin futility. Then Axel was beside him, one hand carefully peeling back the paper, and Roxas’ eyes sprung wide. It was stunning; everything was crisp and clean, centered as Axel had described, characters and imagery rising above the ball of his shoulder and rounding out to just at his armpit. It was more than he could have imagined, even after seeing the sketch. 

“Axel it’s SO dope,” Roxas breathed, craning his neck to see the back where it fell behind his view in the mirror. Then he could suddenly feel warm breath on the back of his neck as Axel leaned in over his shoulder, locking eyes with his in the mirror. 

“Like how it looks? You ready to get started?” his voice was like velvet, smooth and soft in Roxas’ ear, and his eyes were almost glowing in their brightness. Roxas nodded, turning to face the redhead, and their proximity had him looking up at the man. 

“It’s perfect, Axe,” he said softly, and without another word Axel gently guided him to the chair. Once Roxas had taken his seat, the taller man sat on a little rolling stool and zoomed around, getting the last few things in place and donning the gloves. Now that it was just moments away from being a reality, Roxas felt little butterflies of nerves popping up in his stomach. This was gonna hurt. He hoped Axel had enough practice to make the work quick and near-painless, but since he was an apprentice, the likelihood of that was probably slim. Roxas had come with Olette on her eighteenth birthday to get one done and she had cried the whole time; then again, she had always been sort of a baby. Axel settled himself next to the blonde, gun in hand, and as the gun buzzed to life he arched an eyebrow as if questioning Roxas once more. “Go for it,” he said, the excitement in his voice concealing his nerves. Axel nodded, and set the needle to his skin. 

It wasn’t nearly as bad as he had anticipated; either Axel was extremely talented, Roxas had a high pain tolerance, or a combination of the two left him feeling little more than the vibrations of the gun. There were a few brief flashes of a sharp pain as the needle went over a place that was particularly thin skin over bone, but otherwise it was next to nothing. After a few moments absorbing his surroundings, he found himself watching Axel work; more specifically, he found himself memorizing minute details of Axel while the redhead was focused on his task. His eyes traced over the angular planes of Axel’s face, lingering on his tattoos and the surprisingly lush eyelashes that framed his focused eyes. He watched the red hair move along with every action, noted how it seemed to defy gravity as the large spikes of hair swooped back from his face. He tried to picture what the tattoos on the man’s arms and chest could be of; piecing his guesses together with the bits he could see peeking out from the shirt that concealed them. They way he bit his bottom lip as he was particularly focused was leading Roxas’ mind to places it shouldn’t go, so it was then that he broke his silent ogling. 

“What made you come up with the characters you picked for this?” he asked almost desperately, hoping he wouldn’t disturb Axel’s work while simultaneously NEEDING to disturb his wild imagination. Axel, to his credit, didn’t look away for a second, speaking slowly as he continued his delicate work. 

“Well, a few are from games you’ve mentioned; here’s the Assassin’s Creed logo, Mass Effect’s, Borderlands’...a few are old classics that I was sure you as a gamer would have grown up on, like Mario over here, the Tetris blocks there, Spyro. Then there were a few I made guesses on, like the cactuar and the blitzball from Final Fantasy. Some I threw in sentimentally, like the energy sword and the Prince from Katamari, and this companion cube I’m finishing up.” Roxas was stunned into silence again. It was true, there wasn’t a single image in the piece that he wasn’t familiar with and didn’t love the original game. Just like the drawing he had been given by Kairi, it struck him how much thought Axel must have spent, not just on the sketch but also on thinking of him. It was touching to say the least, and left his heart a twisted mess. What was he going to do when Axel inevitably got bored with him and moved on to the next exciting thing? He felt like a hole was opening up in his chest, a premonition of the pain he would be left with, and it left him aching and breathless. The redhead must have sensed the change, the tension, in him, and quickly finished what he was working on, lifting the gun as soon as he was able with a wipe to the area he had just completed. “Hey, are you alright? Wanna take a break for a little?” Roxas just nodded glumly; some air would probably do him some good. Axel grabbed a roll of cellophane and wrapped it around the area, completely covering the linework that looked to be about a third of the way done. As soon as Axel’s hands fell away, Roxas jumped up. 

“Just gonna take a quick walk, I’ll be right back,” Roxas gasped, rushing towards the door and the warm air behind it with his shirt in his hand, leaving a shocked-looking redhead in his wake. As soon as he burst through the doors, he made a sharp turn and paced quickly down the cheery sidewalk, almost angry at the bright, beautiful atmosphere. He yanked on his shirt as quickly as he could without disturbing the cellophane, not breaking his stride as he did so. He made it about six storefronts down before Axel caught up with him. 

“You know, you’re taking it like a pro,” Axel panted, falling quickly into place beside the smaller man and matching his pace, “which leaves me to believe that wasn’t what sent you running.” Roxas kept his eyes straight ahead, fists clenched at his sides, and tried to ignore the redhead. Axel clearly wasn’t having that, however. “So, what’s going on, Roxy? Why are you, literally, running away?” Fed up, torn between heartache and anger at the man beside him, Roxas stopped dead; Axel continued on for a step or two before realizing and pivoting to face him. 

“Why am I only good enough for a quick fuck?” he demanded in a voice probably a little too loud for their public setting, trying to fight back tears of frustration or despondency. “Why don’t you want to even consider anything more?” Axel’s eyes tightened, then narrowed, and he took the two steps back to put himself toe to toe with the blonde. He opened his mouth, but then his eyes darted up and around them, and he frowned. Then he grabbed the shirtsleeve of Roxas’ unwrapped arm and roughly tugged him off the sidewalk and into a narrow alley between two buildings. He released the blonde as soon as they were out of the public eye, and crossed his arms across his chest. 

“Roxas, it’s not you, it’s everyone. I just don’t want all the things that come with being serious with someone.” He spoke in a voice that was dismissive and blunt, clearly not wanting to budge or willing to say more, but Roxas had already released the floodgates of his emotions and couldn’t stop himself. 

“Whatever! That’s bullshit, Axel. Or you’re literally the biggest coward ever.” Axel’s sharp glare at the words stung, but he was unable to stop the words pouring from his mouth. “What’s the worst that would happen? You gain five pounds eating ice cream then move on to the next person to catch your eye? You make yourself look like an idiot crying, then get over it? Life happens, Axel. Life goes on. Why not live it, like actually live it, not try to cherrypick your favorite parts?” The more he said, the harder and angrier Axel’s face had grown, so by the time he finished speaking and the silence grew heavily, he found himself under a black look full of pain and rage. The redhead let the pause extend as he clearly struggled to gain control of himself, and Roxas began to lose the heat of his anger in the wake of regret, when Axel spoke at last. 

“You don’t know anything about me, do you, Roxas?” he spat out, and continued without waiting for a reply. “Do you know how I grew up? That I lived with my uncle? Do you know WHY?” Roxas felt his eyes grow wide, not anticipating the direction the conversation had turned. He shook his head, and Axel hissed, “Do you really think you want to?” 

“What does any of that-“ he began, surprise the most prevalent tone in his voice, but as his words began the larger man began speaking again, as if any sound made would have triggered what he was now saying. 

“When I was a kid, some shit went down between my parents. I was like six, Kairi was still a baby, I didn’t understand everything. I did see my dad’s ‘friend’ several times,” the harsh sarcasm at the word made it clear what kind of friend it probably was. “He and my mom had this huge, blowup fight, and she kicked him out. He left and never looked back. We ended up with my uncle,” he said, but the way the sentences fit together felt wrong. Roxas took advantage of the break in his words, though. 

“Axel, I’m not fucking asking you to marry me, I just want you to be more than a friend, kept at arms length, not sharing-“ and then wanted to never speak again as he saw the wounded, agony-filled expression that devastated the redhead’s face before it hardened into a mask of blind fury. 

“I was the one who found her. She fucking killed herself. Roxas. She killed herself over a scumbag who broke her heart, broke her whole world, who didn’t even call us or try to come get us or anything. He was terrible, and she was stupid, and I’m not going to be either. I’m not going to be the person who destroys someone like that, and I’m not going to be stupid enough to let myself be in a position where someone else could take everything from me like that.” Axel’s broke at the end, but the weakness was quickly sealed away again. He straightened up, as he had leaned toward Roxas in the intensity of his revelation, and took a half step back. “Now, I’m going to head back, make myself a shitty coffee, drink it, have a cigarette, and then go back to your booth. If you’re not there, that’s totally your call, but if you are, I’m gonna finish up your lines. And then never mention this again.” Axel then spun toward the street again and stalked quickly out of sight. Roxas stood there in the alley, alone and heartbroken, replaying Axel’s words in his head, imagining what it would have done to a small child to find their mother like that. He felt like a monster for goading the information out of the other man. He felt unbelievably selfish, for wanting more from Axel than he wanted to give, and for wanting some sort of validation for his feelings that ultimately were stupid, as it had been clear all along that Axel wasn’t interested in them. He felt like his heart was absent from his chest as the reality that he would never have more with Axel set in, and despite having tried to keep everything light and his feelings in some sort of control, he knew that if he were honest with himself, he was harboring something a lot more significant than a crush for the redhead. He also felt like letting Axel continue his free tattoo work would be taking advantage of the man, but then again, he had a third of a tattoo on his arm, so he needed to go back and at least talk to Axel about payment for finishing it. That was the thought that drove him into stumbling action, and he made his way back to the tattoo parlor. As he entered, Xigbar, who was now standing behind the desk up front, chuckled dryly. 

“You’ve got a lot of balls, kid. I wouldn’t mess with him right now. Boy, did you piss him off,” he drawled, and everything about him in that moment set Roxas on edge. 

“Fuck off,” he muttered, walking into the booth and away from the man’s slow, gruff laugh. Axel was still presumably having that cigarette, because the small room was empty, so Roxas perched on the edge of the cellophane-wrapped chair to wait for him. When Axel did return, both he and Roxas exchanged an abashed look, and then both spoke at once. 

“I really didn’t mean to-“ 

“Rox, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have-“ 

The pair shared a tentative smile before Roxas frowned, the redhead’s words sinking in. 

“Don’t you dare apologize,” Roxas growled, “I forced it out of you. You’ve been clear about where you stand and what you want from the beginning, and it was stupid and selfish of me to-“ but then it was Axel’s turn to cut him off. 

“You have every right to ask why, to want validation for your feelings. I haven’t been sending the clearest signals either, I suppose. There was no reason for me to unload on you like that.” Axel paused briefly, then added, “it’s been on my mind a lot lately.” Roxas winced, feeling like it was obvious that was due to him and his stubborn, selfishly imposed rules. Yet the pain lashing around the empty place where his heart should have been residing reminded him of exactly WHY he had set the rule in the first place. 

“Axel, I...I know sorry doesn’t even BEGIN to-“ but Roxas found himself cut off again by a dismissive wave from the redhead. 

“Forget it. Literally. We aren’t gonna mention that again.” Then he gave a weak smile, a shadow of the grins he’d worn earlier, but an attempt nonetheless. “Think we could reset to right before I chased you out of here so I can give you an awesome tattoo and flirt a little while I check out shirtless you?” Roxas felt sick, but nodded blankly; if Axel wanted to pretend that drastic turn of events hadn’t taken place, the least he could do would be to try to play along. Then he remembered his earlier resolve. 

“No, wait...I mean, yes to all of that except, I should be paying you, Red. I feel like I’m-“ a third time, the taller man stopped him from finishing his though, this time with a groan. 

“If you say ‘taking advantage of me,’ I’m gonna be deeply offended. First of all,do I give you the impression that I’m someone that gets taken advantage of? Second, you’re doing me a favor, getting a tattoo from someone who’s not technically a professional. Third...well, I never said you couldn’t repay me, only that I’m not taking your munny.” With that said, he winked broadly at Roxas and went to wash his hands. The blonde shook his head, but didn’t protest further. Instead he let himself slip into a pretend pout. 

“Are you gonna let me talk, or are you just gonna keep interrupting me?” he grumped, sticking out his lower lip. Axel chuckled at his expression, pulling on a pair of gloves that he had set out on his workspace. 

“You’re too cute for your own good,” he said rather than answering, and sat on the stool beside the chair. “I just can’t keep myself in check around you.” Then he picked his gun up, buzzing it before quickly turning it off again. “Ready for round two?” he asked, eyeing the blonde’s shirt pointedly. Roxas sighed, stripping it off once again, and Axel began unwrapping his shoulder as soon as he had sat back in the chair. As Axel refocused on the tattoo and got back to work, Roxas mulled over the information he had just gained. He didn’t know where to go from here, and he wanted a strong course of action by the time the buzzing of the gun was silenced again. He could accept the inevitability of his attraction and just sleep with the redhead, and he knew the time he got would be amazing, but...despite what he’d said to the man in anger, he knew he wouldn’t just cry and get over it. He already knew that Axel was someone he would keep returning to in his heart, would always measure any other prospective partner against the fiery heat and snarky nature and amazing physique that the redhead held. He would spend the rest of his life with the constant ‘what if’ tormenting him, haunting him. The same outcome would be had if he simply tried to distance himself now, except the guilt of being the one to cause the pain and heartache would probably drive him insane. At least with the first option, he would have that brief, shining moment of getting everything before it was torn from him. The only other path Roxas could see would be to let things continue as they were, with Roxas keeping Axel in his life selfishly for as long as possible until Axel eventually lost interest and moved on. With that route, there was the small possibility that they would have become good enough friends that Axel would continue to spend time with him in that capacity, and he would be free to pine away for the man forever without having to lose him completely. As painful as it would be to see Axel chasing after someone else, that seemed like the only option that wouldn’t leave him bleeding slowly from the wound his disappearance would make. So...until he came up with something new, that would be the plan. With a course of action now set for him, he was able to regather himself, and he focused in on Axel again. The redhead was finishing up the crown now, wiping excess ink away to evaluate the set lines. 

“Still looks crazy awesome,” Roxas cracked, and green eyes flicked searchingly to his before darting back to the skin under his hands. 

“Hey, I gotta do justice to the gorgeous canvas I’ve been presented with,” Axel purred, gesturing vaguely with his free hand at Roxas’ shirtless torso. Roxas snorted, then a thought popped into his head he couldn’t help but blurt out. 

“So are you gonna find me more attractive after this, or was it just the lure of unmarked skin that was calling you?” he questioned, half teasing, but Axel paused his work with a loud groan. 

“Oh Gaia, you’re right, Roxy. I’m not gonna be able to keep my hands off you. I should stop now,” he finished in mock desperation, making as if to stand. Roxas caught the sleeve of his shirt and tugged him back down. 

“Nope, can’t stop now. Besides, do YOU want to be the reason I’m marked for all eternity with a half-finished tattoo?” Axel sighed resignedly, buzzing the gun back to life. 

“Well not when you put it like THAT,” he sniffed, getting back to it. “Besides, we’re closer to done than halfway. You’d at least be walking around with only like a quarter missing.” Roxas looked, shocked, and realized the redhead was right. The only parts missing were the characters on the closest edge to his chest; this was absolutely the man’s calling, no doubt about that. He leaned his head back on the cushion, determined not to look again until it was done. He didn’t want to leave them in silence, however; he was hoping that by the time he was free to move again, they would be back to how things were after he’d first arrived at the shop. 

“What are yours of? I’ve only seen the edges of the flames...” he trailed off, remembering the bits he’d seen in the picture Axel had sent him, and the fragments that would occasionally peek out at the edges of his neckline or sleeve. Axel just laughed. 

“You’re just gonna have to wait til you get my shirt off to find out,” he crooned suggestively, then threw Roxas a look that, although it was just a flashing glance, had his stomach in knots. Roxas let out a grumble. 

“Hey, that’s completely unfair. You can’t use my attraction to you against me like that,” he muttered, giving Axel a baleful stare. “Just tell me, come on. Please?” 

“I’ve already told you; tattoos look better than they sound “ was Axel’s haughty reply. “Besides, your attraction is my greatest ally in this. Of course I’m going to take advantage of it.” Roxas pouted. “Awh, don’t gimme that look, Roxy. You know I’ll let you take my clothes off any time,” he said with a wink. Trying to stop the mental image of himself tanking off Axel’s shirt, and the others that would surely follow, Roxas instead tried desperately to think of something else to say. 

“How much longer are we gonna stay here after you finish this up?” Axel smirked at him. 

“Just long enough to clean up and do a little paperwork. Still gonna catch that ride with me, then?” came the teasing reply from the redhead. Roxas rolled his eyes. 

“Well duh. I sorta thought we’d be hanging out,” Roxas said hesitantly, now realizing that might be off the table after today, but instead of rejecting him, Axel’s eyes glowed. 

“I’d like nothing more,” he said with more feeling than Roxas had expected. The gun shut off again as Axel leaned forward, locking eyes with Roxas and seeming like he was trying to will Roxas to believe his words. “Nothing’s changed, Roxas.” Then he leaned back with a smirk. “Well, except for this.” Suddenly, he was rubbing down Roxas’ whole shoulder with something that felt sticky and viscous. “This will help it heal and keep the black solid,” he muttered at he worked. Satisfied with what he’d done, he stood and offered Roxas a hand. “Wanna check it out before I wrap you up?” Roxas’ eyes popped wide as he leapt to his feet, trying to see the full work on his shoulder. It was FANTASTIC; whatever Axel had put on it made it shiny but the crisp, dark lines were beautiful. Everything was rendered true to the original character and the sketch itself, except more detail and shading had been added. The controller looked like he could reach and pick it up; it was shadowed and looked like it was sitting on top of the burst of gaming references. When Axel put his hand on his unmarked shoulder and turned him towards a large mirror, Roxas practically ran to it. It was perfectly done, every curve and shape and detail could not have been improved upon; Roxas was ecstatic, and grateful. 

“Axel,” he whispered, voice full of awe, “it’s amazing. I don’t even have words for how happy I am.” Axel was glowing, seeming very pleased with himself as he sidled up to the shoulder and leaned down, looking at it closely. 

“It turned out just like I’d hoped; when someone sees it they’re gonna think you’ve a badass, and if they’re close enough to make out the details, they’re gonna know you’re a badass gamer,” he teased, flicking his eyes up to meet Roxas’ and make sure his comment was well-received. Roxas was still in shock over it; it still hadn’t completely sunk in that he would have this indescribable artwork on his arm forever. After a brief pause in which he watched Roxas take in the tattoo, Axel gave a melodramatic sigh. “And yes, you look even hotter, if possible. Now what am I going to do with myself.” He rolled his eyes and then winked at the blonde suggestively. “Actually, I think I can come up with a few things...” he trailed off, waggling his eyebrows, and Roxas pushed him gently but firmly away with a laugh. 

“I hope they’re things like ‘finish up your work so we can get outta here and grab some food,” Roxas said, still chuckling, as he continued to memorize every detail of his exquisite tattoo. Axel groaned, but went and grabbed some bandages and tape. 

“What a taskmaster you are. I’m glad I’m not working for YOU,” he said with a sniff, returning to Roxas’ side and beginning to cover up the shiny skin. Then he took on a more businesslike tone. “I’ll have you take off the bandages in a few hours, and then you’ll wash this bad boy with soap and water. Then you’ll put more of the aquaphor all over it; I’m gonna send you home with some,” he said, shoving the tube of the ointment into Roxas’ hands. “Then you’ll reapply the aquaphor every time it dries for a few days, and you’ll be good to go. Got it memorized?” He tapped his temple with a finger as he asked, and Roxas was immediately transported to the first time the redhead had used the line. Smiling to himself as he remembered that first meeting, he nodded. Axel finished taping the bandage solidly to him and stepped back, peeling off his gloves and beginning to clean the workspaces. “I’d call that a good day’s work for sure. After a few weeks of letting it heal up, I’ll color it, and then you’ll REALLY be done,” Axel said, breaking down and cleaning his gun and the equipment around it. “You took that like a pro, by the way. I’m a little surprised,” he smirked, then added, “no offense, Blondie. But I was expecting to do that in two sessions, to be honest.” Roxas laughed outright at that. 

“Dude, you’re meant to do this. It was nothing at all, I barely had any pain the whole time.” Axel was peeling the cellophane off the chair and discarding it, but seemed pleased with the praise. 

“I appreciate the sentiment, Roxy,” he turned, stepping towards the smaller man, now apparently finished with the room. “So do you wanna wait here for a little or watch me do boring paperwork?” Playfully, Roxas gave him a wink of his own. 

“Lead the way. The view will definitely be better,” he said offhandedly, as if commenting on the weather, but he saw Axel’s eyes flash with interest at his words. Without response, he led Roxas back out of the booth and to the back room, and ushered him into a chair before taking a seat for himself. He busied himself with some papers in a folder, jotting several things down before checking the time and making a note of that as well. Roxas pulled out his phone to keep himself occupied and realized it was already after five. Time seemed to have ceased to exist once he’d seen Axel; he had no idea it had gotten so late. He locked his phone again and pocketed it, then rested his head on his hands, elbows on the table, and continued to watch Axel unabashedly. Axel was checking something off on another sheet, then snapped the folder shut. 

“Wanna get out of here?” he asked Roxas, anticipation coloring his tone, and Roxas felt his spirits lift as well. He hopped down from his chair and made a wide, sweeping gesture indicating Axel should lead the way in response, and the redhead did so, calling, “I’m out!” as they passed by Xigbar’s booth, now occupied with a customer, and waved slightly at the girl who was now seated behind the desk. She just popped the gum she was chewing at him loudly, and then they were out the door. 

“So we headed to your place to wait for everyone?” Roxas asked, trying to establish the plan as they left, but the redhead halted at his words. 

“Didn’t you get the text from Dem? Tonight’s off, shortie. My house is gonna be a pretty somber, anxious sort of place,” Axel said, a note of despondency dropping into his tone. Roxas furrowed his brow in confusion. 

“What? No, no one told me anything. What’s going on? Is everything okay?” Roxas asked anxiously. Demyx was usually one to roll with the punches, Roxas really hadn’t seen him down for any serious length of time. Axel nodded slowly, eyes tightening slightly. 

“They picked up a good buddy of his, Tidus. Since it’s campus, high rates of drugs and underage drinking and all that...well, a few times a year the cops around here have a ‘roundup’ and they bust everyone they’ve gotten tips on all at once. Tidus got taken down. Demyx has known him since they were kids, and Tidus wasn’t really a big deal or anything, so not only is Demyx worried for his friend, but they could be on Demyx’s trail, too.” Roxas felt his mouth drop open. His brain refused to even put the images he had of sweet, bubbly, carefree Demyx and jail together. 

“How’d they get him?” he asked softly, eyes wide. Axel chuckled sympathetically, tousling his blonde spikes before speaking again. 

“They got a tip, pulled his phone records, simple as that. Once they’ve got a record of an illegal transaction, they can make their move. Usually at least get a warrant, and if they can get inside to search...” he trailed off, spreading his arms helplessly. “Nothing really we can do. Those are the risks.” Roxas shook his head, refusing to accept that. There had to be something...then it dawned on him; he could MAKE something. Some sort of scrubber, to change both incoming and outgoing signals as well as existing records, like a virus almost...he was getting excited. He could probably do it. If he used the framework he had for the app he had been working on in his spare time, it might not even take him that long. Axel was watching him closely, and frowned at the look of enthusiastic ambition growing on his face. “Roxy...what are you thinking?” he asked slowly, looking like he wasn’t sure if he needed to intercede. 

“Axel, I think I actually CAN help,” he said, voice bright and expression glowing. “How much do you know about coding?” Then he broke into bright peaks of laughter at the expression on Axel’s face. “Come on, Red, you can help by loading us a bowl and ordering a pizza. I’ve got some work to do.” With that said, Roxas had already leapt to his feet and started walking in the direction of the redhead’s car, leaving Axel to hurry after him once his stupefied brain had caught up. 

“Does this mean you’re taking me home?” he called out to the blonde, already almost caught up to the shorter man, and a brief laugh floated back to him. 

“Yeah, I guess it does. Now pick it up! Your legs are like six feet long, how am I beating you?” teased Roxas, picking up his own pace as heard the redhead do the same behind him. Weaving quickly between a small group of people walking along the quieting street, Axel was almost close enough to reach out and touch the other man when they reached his car and Roxas froze, spinning on his heel to face the still-rapidly-approaching redhead. “I’ve got it! I-“ but was cut off as Axel, desperately trying to stop but not able to slow his trajectory quickly enough, collided with him and slammed them both up against the side of the car. Though he had slowed significantly, he had pushed the smaller blonde between himself and the vehicle with enough force to knock the wind out of him. At least he kept me from getting a concussion, Roxas thought giddily, belatedly noticing that when they had collided, Axel had stuck his hand behind the blonde’s head to absorb any impact with the car. Axel laughed breathlessly, looking down at Roxas like he was checking him for signs of injury. 

“Shit, you’re fast, Roxy, I’m sorry,” he panted out, “I was too focused on you to even notice the fucking car.” With his body still trapped between the hard steel and glass of the vehicle and the warm, muscular frame of the redhead, Roxas found himself craning his neck to look into those piercingly green eyes he had become so familiar with. Axel looked chagrined and exuberant at once, but as the seconds ticked by and they remained standing as they were, his face began to shift into an expression that was both hopeful and joyous, with something else Roxas couldn’t name shining radiantly in his eyes. His eyes locked onto Roxas’s lips as he began to lean down and close the little distance there was between them. Ah, fuck, there was no time to even consider stopping him before Axel’s lips were on his, and he found himself locked into the redhead yet again. That he was going to be kicking himself over this later was the last coherent thought he had. Axel was kissing him slowly yet firmly, lips moving in a way that had him melting into the man. It was quick, but devastating; when Axel peeled himself off Roxas and pulled away from the kiss in the same movement, Roxas had to stop himself from weakly calling him back. Axel’s eyes were luminous as he strolled his way to the driver’s side of the car, swiftly sliding in and starting the car. Roxas was still frozen, but the vehicle rumbling beneath him restarted his brain and he opened his own door. As he shut the door behind himself, he decided the safest course of action was to pretend the last few minutes hadn’t occurred. 

“So anyways,” he began, and saw Axel’s expression slip into a pout out of the corner of his eye. 

“Oh, come on, Roxy. Aren’t you ever just gonna-“ came the start of what was sure to be an attempt to talk him into bed as the car pulled away from the curbside, and Roxas interrupted him quickly. 

“I think I can come up with something that will not only keep Demyx protected for the future, but also scrub his phone records from the past.” With his declaration, Axel swiveled his head around, completely looking away from the road to search Roxas’ face for any sign of a joke. 

“What?" 

"Take me home, Red. We’ve got some work to do."


	15. Chapter Fifteen

It took him about a month. A month of classes that became more monotonous as time passed. A month of working at the Lucky Cat Cafe part time, as he had decided he just needed to make enough for rent for now until he finished his project. A month of Axel’s dogged pursuit, never faltering in trying to wear down Roxas’ guard and convince him that casual sex was the way to go. Despite what they had said, the two had become extremely close; they were texting, or in each other’s presence, at any chance they had. If anyone asked, they would have defined themselves as friends, but they both still wanted more from the other than they were willing to give, so they were stuck in a stalemate of sorts. Axel also filled out his tattoo during this time; the gorgeous black line work slowly bloomed with color and detail and depth until it was finally filled in and finished. Once Roxas had healed up completely, Axel had a friend come and professionally photograph the work from every angle for his portfolio. A month of afternoons with Demyx, fitting in video game and smoking sessions when they were both free from class. The friendship between the two was growing to the level Demyx shared with Axel very quickly, and Roxas found himself fitting naturally into the household whenever he had a chance to be there. Some nights he went out with their gang, but some nights he went to Aqua’s study hall. A month of those study hall sessions; Roxas usually took his coding over there to get a break from the monotony of his apartment and work on it with fresh eyes. He had also acclimated to their group very well; he found Zexion to be a soothing presence who he could bounce some of his ideas or theories off of, and Riku quietly yet stoically worked through almost any problem Roxas brought to him. Terra had become almost an older brother, fussing over Roxas focusing on this project rather than school and roughhousing with him alternately. If Terra was a brother, Aqua was the mother of the group; always there to inquire about personal matters, to help and encourage with work, and to laugh cheerfully while feeding them all. Once Riku and Zexion had told her about his attraction to men, there had been no awkwardness whatsoever between them. He met a lot of new people through the group, too, as visitors would appear periodically. A month of late nights in his room, eating pizza and downing energy drinks in front of his screen rather than going out or having a beer, as he puzzled his way through endless lines of code. And a month of tense, anxious concern that at any moment, something could happen to Demyx, and everything would be for naught. That, and their best friend would be incarcerated. 

On this particular evening, he was working at home and fitting in some casual hanging out with Axel; he was camped out in front of his laptop as usual while the redhead lounged on his bed, drawing on a sketch pad. Roxas was running simulations to test if the app was preforming as expected and ready to be tested in the real world. Everything had been going smoothly, no problems had come up, and the app was running perfectly. Without being able to run the final test he wanted... 

“I think I’m done,” he said quietly, almost in shock, and Axel leapt off the bed at the words, coming to stand behind him. “Unless you have a way for me to get into a police database without having to hack them, that is,” he added jokingly as Axel looked at the app on screen, clicking through menus. It was the first time he had let anyone look through the app itself, and he was interested to see what the redhead would think, to see if he could fully understand all that the application could provide. 

“Roxy, is this for real?” he breathed, fingers flying rapidly across the screen as he clicked through the menus at an increasing pace. “Will it actually be able to do all of this?” 

“It IS able to do all of that,” Roxas corrected, “I’ve just finished running every test and simulation I could think of, so unless you have an in with a police officer who wouldn’t rat us out...” 

“I might, actually,” Axel said distractedly, reading a pop up message explaining the instructions for the steps to take when installing. “Roxas, this is...amazing. Ohmygaia, Dem’s gonna lose his fucking mind!” he exclaimed, whipping out his phone and beginning to text. 

“Wait!” Roxas jumped out of his chair, grabbing for the redhead’s phone. “Don’t tell him yet!” Axel only held the phone higher out of Roxas’s reach, chuckling as he finished and sent the message. 

“That wasn’t to Demyx, Blondie, relax. Or keep jumping on me, you know, the bed’s right there...” Axel trailed off suggestively, waggling his eyebrows, and Roxas sighed at him. The redhead’s phone beeped at him, and he immediately checked it, grinning widely at what he saw. “Hey sexy, wanna take a road trip?” Roxas looked at him quizzically, completely thrown off. 

“Uh, what?” Roxas asked dazedly, only drawing forth a laugh from the taller man, who tousled his hair and then held up his phone. 

“That police contact is gonna be waiting for us at Oogie’s. Luxord knows a guy, called him up to the casino for us. We gotta book it, though; it’s gonna take a while to get there, especially if the ferry’s on the other side when we get to it.” Roxas sprang into action, unplugging his laptop and stuffing the matching and the cord into his nearby backpack. 

“How long?” he questioned, throwing in a phone charger just in case. Axel tapped his chin with a slender finger as if thinking. 

“Well, again, it depends on the ferry, but I’d say...about two hours? Each direction.” Roxas glanced at the time as he finished getting his stuff together; it was already ten fifteen. They’d be having this meeting late, then; that would probably be for the best. He nodded, slinging his bag over his shoulder and signaling he was ready. Axel strode quickly through the door, leading Roxas through his own place and out the front door. Once they made it to Axel’s car, he threw it in reverse and sped off, then briefly glanced over at Roxas. 

“Can I trust you with the aux cord?” he asked teasingly, dangling the plug in front of the smaller blonde. Roxas grabbed it, plugging his phone in and flipping to his music. 

“You know, just for doubting me I should put on some shit,” Roxas snidely commented, but instead chose one of his favorite artists. As Pierce The Veil began a fast-paced, upbeat song, Axel cranked it and the two jammed for a while. The mix was great, and often one or both of them would sing along with the music loudly. Axel was chain smoking, windows down and breeze tugging wildly at his long hair. After about a half an hour, they had neared the coast, and the air had the tang of saltwater to it; another ten minutes and they had reached a large dock that led to a ferry. There were no cars queued up, and luck was on their side as the shape of the ferry became clear the closer they edged to the end of the pier. A grizzled old man stomped over to Axel’s side of the car, and once he had collected their fee, opened the gates to allow them to drive onto the boat. This was all a completely new experience for Roxas, who had never traveled by sea before, and he stared wide-eyed out the open window. Axel chuckled when he noticed Roxas’ expression. 

“This isn’t your first time out on the water, is it?” he asked kindly, an odd light in his eyes. Roxas nodded, still trying to see everything despite the darkness. “As soon as this thing gets moving, I’m gonna show you something awesome.” Roxas tore his eyes away from the window, looking to the taller man, but at that moment the ferry blew its horn twice and then lurched away from the dock. Roxas was so focused on the moonlight shining brilliantly on the ocean and the sounds of the boat slicing through the water that he had all but forgotten what Axel had said until he felt a gentle hand on his arm. He turned quickly and caught the soft, conflicted expression in the redhead’s eyes before it took on a more excited quality. “Come on. Let’s get out.” 

“We can get out?” Roxas asked enthusiastically, frantically trying to extract himself from the seatbelt. Axel laughed, sliding out of the car and waiting for Roxas by the hood. He then led the blonde towards the side of the boat, and the two looked out over the moonlit waves. Silence fell between the two as they listened to the sounds of the water and the boat, watched the stars and the moon twinkle both above and below them, smelled the cool, salty air. It looked like the night sky extended around them forever, as the place where the sky met the sea was blurred together in the dark. Roxas was awestruck; several moments passed before he realized the redhead wasn’t looking out past the rails like he was, and that his quiet was for an entirely other reason. “What is it?” he asked when he caught Axel’s eyes as they gazed upon him with an unfathomable depth. Axel didn’t blink, didn’t change his facial features by even a fraction, for a long pause, seeming to be lost in his thoughts. Roxas gazed back for that immeasurable moment, wondering what was playing behind the redhead’s eyes, when Axel seemed to thaw, blinking and looking out over the water. 

“Has enough time passed that I can bring up that date you owe me?” Axel asked casually, still not looking at the blonde, but Roxas saw his hands clench on the rail underneath them. The question left him reeling. Here he had been thinking that after the events of the day he’d gotten his tattoo, that was off the table. Axel hadn’t brought it up again, and Roxas was sure that had been intentional, so neither had he. 

“What do you mean?” he asked blankly, trying to understand why Axel was asking HIM if enough time had passed. Still looking away, Axel’s words tumbled out as if he had been holding them in for a long time. 

“Well, you know, you still owe me for losing Drunk Katamari. When I asked you about it, you put it off, and then...well, you never mentioned it again, and I didn’t wanna push my luck. Especially when I saw how much time and energy you were putting into this,” he said, gesturing vaguely at the sea before the boat, “I wasn’t sure you’d wanna waste your time humoring me with that.” Roxas’ mouth fell open in shock. 

“But you...I...really?” Roxas asked, beginning to feel a little guilty. “Was I really giving off the impression that doing something like that with you would have been a waste of time?” Axel’s eyes flicked to Roxas and then away again so quickly Roxas would have missed it if he hadn’t been staring the man down in his shock. 

“Maybe not, but you were focused enough that maybe I didn’t want to waste your time with it,” the redhead admitted, now looking down at his hands where they were gripping the railing. “I’m still not sure if forcing you to do it will really accomplish what I’m looking for, either,” he said quietly, voice fading quickly away into the night. At this point, sadness and guilt washed away his shock enough that Axel’s words drove Roxas to find his voice. 

“Okay, first of all, I’m so sorry if I made you feel in any way like I wouldn’t be super stoked to go on a date with you; that couldn’t be further from the truth. Second, I only stopped talking about it because after you started my tattoo,” he saw Axel flinch at the memory, but pressed on, “I thought you didn’t wanna go through with it anymore, which I understood. It’s totally up to you; you won, after all. But if you’re holding off because of ME, well, you know my schedule. You tell me when and where, and it’s a date.” Axel finally looked at him with a sarcastic smirk, but seeing the sincerity in Roxas’ face, it twisted into a bright, shining smile. 

“I’d like that, I think. Hmm, so since it’s Thursday and you’ve got tomorrow pretty free after noon, could I take your evening?” Roxas grinned. This had come from left field, and he couldn’t begin to imagine what train of thought had led the redhead there, but he was grateful for it; the limbo of their friendship was confusing at best and at times excruciating. 

“It’s yours. Do you have something in mind?” he asked, leaning casually up against the railing. Axel shrugged innocently at him. 

“I’ll let you know by the time your class is out tomorrow,” he said, then suddenly smiled and stepped back from the railing. “Come on, lets get back in the car. See those sparkly lights there? We’re getting close to shore,” he said, leading the smaller man back towards his vehicle. “It’s almost showtime.” Now that their destination was that much closer and he had time to think about what they were on their way to do, he was beginning to get nervous. 

“Since I didn’t think to question your gift before,” Roxas said, changing the conversation to what was on his mind now, “can we talk about how you were able to set up a midnight meeting with a corrupt cop with absolutely no notice whatsoever?” Axel let out a bark of laughter, then settled in to tell his side, despite the ferry horn sounding their approaching of the new dock. 

“You know Luxord works at Oogie’s, right?” Roxas nodded, wanting the redhead to continue; he’d heard enough references and stories that this wasn’t news to him. “See, the casino’s...kind of a central hub for some pretty shady characters. Luxy met the guy dealing cards, and he’s kept him as a contact for a few years now. Actually used him at one point to get me out of some serious trouble; that’s why I know about him.” His voice grew distant, and a little more hesitant, as he began to drive them off the ferry and towards the large signs beginning to appear directing them towards the city of Radiant Gardens. “Oogie’s is the closest this area has to a crime boss hideout, and a lot of the people there are no good, so don’t talk to anyone without me, okay? I’m not trying to tell you what to do, but...our gang all thinks they’re badasses, and even we don’t come down here unless we’re all together.” That sent a shiver down his spine, and Roxas found himself wondering if he should be worried about more than the legalities of what they were doing. He steeled his resolve, reminding himself that this would ultimately keep Demyx safe, and shrugged as if going into a crime den in the middle of the night to meet a corrupt cop was no big deal. 

“Sure, sure. So if it’s such a hotspot for all this crime, why isn’t the place swarming with cops?” The ghost of a smile tugged at the serious redhead’s lips. 

“Rox, these people run the town. They’d run the world if they could reach that far. This is headquarters for the kind of mob big enough that they’re not worried about the police. So let’s just keep quiet and do our thing and then get out. I’ll bring you back to gamble some other time,” his joke fell flat with the tone of his voice, but Roxas chuckled a little anyway. 

“At least we’re not messing with those people, right? Sounds like a flipped cop is nothing,” he teased back, and that finally cracked through Axel’s tension, forcing a laugh from him. 

“I guess that’s true. Roxy, you are such trouble for someone so tiny,” he cracked, and Roxas played offended. 

“How could you. I’m just here to make your life more exciting,” he pouted with a wounded gaze at the other man. Their banter continued for another twenty minutes, and as the streetlights flashing by overhead became infused with neon lights and huge, sleek buildings and warehouses leaking black clouds of smoke, a sense of foreboding grew in him. When gigantic, flashing billboards with a monster that looked like a burlap sack began declaring that their destination was approaching, Axel turned the already low music off and let silence and the sounds of the quiet city whooshing by through the open windows fill the vehicle. As he watched Axel light up another cigarette, he mused aloud, “you know, its times like these I wish I smoked. Does it help?” Axel chuckled dryly, shaking his head. 

“A little, but not really. Maybe the routine does. But not in this case,” he said darkly, glaring out the windshield at the luminous point of light now becoming visible between buildings as they approached. The casino was lit up like a beacon, with a ridiculously lavish exterior and grand drive leading up to the entrance that would have put the fanciest of hotels to shame. Axel skipped that, instead driving around the back to a huge parking structure that could have been a large building, and took them up several floors until he found a suitable spot that had a decent number of vehicles in it, but wasn’t packed and had clearer lines of sight. The thought Axel was obviously putting into just their parking location set Roxas’ nerves on edge again, and as the redhead killed the car and pulled his keys out of the ignition, Roxas caught his arm. 

“Axe, I never even asked if you were okay doing this. You could just drop me inside and tell me who to ask for, you don’t HAVE to be involved in-“ but Axel just shoved his door open and stepped out into the quiet garage, cutting off his words. 

“There’s no way in hell I'm letting you go in there alone, Roxas,” he said with a slight growl to his words. “Even if you did know your way around, and you knew who you were looking for, and it was the middle of the day. Roxy, I know you’ve got steel in you, but you LOOK like prey. You’re small, and cute, and...” his voice grew thick with anger as he trailed off, and then snapped, “there’s no fucking way I’d let you set foot in there without me.” Roxas hurriedly shut the door behind him as he left the car to catch up with the man, who had turned on his heel and stalked off as soon as his outburst had left his mouth. Roxas fell into step beside him in silence; he didn’t speak to the mute, fuming redhead during the elevator ride down to the lowest level, through the brightly-lit walkway leading them to another entrance of the casino’s, or once they’d made it into the lavish, upscale foyer full of bright lights and expensive looking seating and a giant water feature taking up a massive area in the center of the lobby. Roxas had actually decided he just wouldn’t speak unless Axel directed him to as they approached a row of desks along one section of the wall that were set next to a series of grand doorways; this must be a hotel addition to the casino itself. 

“Here for a meeting. Looking for Luxord,” Axel said gruffly to the polite-looking brunette woman behind the nearest desk, who nodded and tapped something into a small handheld device. 

“He’s in the main theatre, blackjack table number ten. Do you know your way?“ she asked in a detached yet professional voice, and Axel nodded his head briefly. 

“Yep, thanks,” he muttered, already striding away towards the doors with Roxas in tow. Roxas was just thinking that Axel’s concern had been ridiculous; the place was so posh and upscale and bright, he couldn’t imagine getting into real danger there, when Axel tanked one of the doors open and led him through into the casino and he saw the place Axel had been talking about. 

The casino was dimly lit, with huge spotlights featuring tables and rows of coin machines and a huge bar along the farthest wall from them, but otherwise the dark and cigarette smoke heavy in the air made it seem like they were walking in shadows almost everywhere they turned. Axel pulled them off to a crevice next to a closed-down smaller bar area and lit himself another cigarette, which gave Roxas a second to survey the area they were in a little more closely. The main area appeared to be almost the size of a football field, and was full of stages with card tables full of gamblers, rows of machines flashing with gaudy neon colors, lounge areas with smokers and drinkers talking or arguing amongst themselves, and wait staff weaving through the crowds with drinks or chips on trays. He also noticed that each doorway had a person in a suit and sunglasses on either side of it, seeming to do nothing but watch the crowds. Occasional loud shouts or laughter broke through the general rumble of conversations; the casino was crowded even at this time of night, and the patrons seemed rowdy and serious and intimidating all at once. Roxas subconsciously stepped closer to Axel and bumped against him, but didn’t back away instantly, finding comfort in his presence. Axel’s hand rubbed his arm briefly before grabbing onto his sleeve and tugging him forward into motion again. As Axel led them on a serpentine path through the crowded area, Roxas spotted Luxord ahead; he was standing behind a huge, full to capacity blackjack table mid-game. He was looking at the table closely, obviously watching for signs of foul play from the people on the small platform, and Roxas briefly wondered how they were going to talk to him when they had arrived at the base of the stage. Axel left him there stepping up and sidling over to Luxord with his side to the man and his back to the table. Roxas saw Luxord whisper something in the redhead’s ear, eyes never leaving the table as he watched the last bids being placed, and Axel nodded and stepped down again. He then led Roxas quickly away from the table and towards the back wall of the room; this one was unlit, shrouded in darkness. He almost didn’t see the two suited figures flanking the dark doorway until they were standing in front of them. One nodded at Axel, pulling open the door and waving them inside before quickly shutting the door again once they’d stepped through. The room they’d entered seemed to be a large conference room, brightly lit and in the same ostentatious style as the hotel lobby. There was a long, polished wood table dominating the room, and a built-in desk with plugs, obviously set up for computers to be brought in. As no one else was in the room, Roxas headed straight for the built-in and began to pull out his laptop and cords. Axel paced around the room with long strides, moving like a caged lion as he waited for their company to arrive. Roxas had already downloaded his app to his phone and set it up fully; all the programs were downloaded and run, and if it had worked correctly, his phone number and information would be impossible to find, even with the resources available to the police department. He was starting to get a little nervous now that he was out of practical things to do, and watching Axel’s constant movement was only adding to it. Finally the door opened again and a large, overweight man with unkempt black hair rushed in. 

“Well, if it ain’t the last kid Captain Justice saved. Inter trouble again, are ya?” His voice was rough, blistering, and the man had an odd, twangy accent. Axel visibly bristled at his words, but his tone was smooth and calm when he spoke. 

“Pete. As much as I appreciate your help last time, I’m just here to keep an eye on things. You’re here for him,” he finished with a nod of his head towards Roxas. The large man seemed to notice the blonde for the first time. 

“Lookie here, ya brought a pipsqueak. Why didn’tcha say sumthin’ before?” He stomped his way to where Roxas was fidgeting by his laptop, and put his hands on his wide hips as he looked down at the smaller man. “Pete is here ta save tha day. Whadderya need, runt?” 

“Um,” Roxas said, trying to gather his thoughts, “I need access to the police search database. Can you access it remotely from my computer if I get it set up?” Pete let out a booming guffaw of a laugh, turning to look at the laptop. 

“Who’re ya tryin to get tha goods on?” he asked, typing something into the internet search bar. “I don’t know nuthin bout these here machines, but I can look up whatever yer wanting, no trubble.” Roxas waited until Pete had the database pulled up and was looking at him expectantly, then recited his own phone number to the man. Axel shot him a look, eyebrows raised, as Pete did as requested. The computer whirred as it searched, and then the page turned up- “Nuttin. Huh, that’s strange. Ya sure yer have tha right number?” Roxas smiles gleefully; the first part of his test was a success. They couldn’t look up new information on the phone number once it was protected. Now for the second test. 

“Yes, I’m sure. That’s exactly what I was hoping for. I’ve got one more thing.” He turned to Axel, pulling a tiny micro SD card from his pocket that had an adapter ready to plug into the phone’s charging port; this was the first product test, and it should install automatically once it was plugged into the phone. “Pete, would you run a search on Axel? Y’all probably have something on file for him,” he said with a touch of humor as Axel shook his head at the blonde, eyes wide, but didn’t object verbally. “Relax,” he whispered to Axel, taking the redhead’s hand and placing the SD card firmly into his palm. “Get that into your phone and let it do the work.” He turned back to the man at the computer in time to see a full file flash up onto the screen, complete with a mugshot of the redhead in the top left corner of the page. He stared at it in shock for a second before Pete turned to look at him and he regained his composure; in his photo, a younger Axel was sporting a massive purple bruise on the right side of his face and eye, and had a trail of blood leaking from the opposite corner of his mouth, but was grinning ferociously at the camera, his green eyes wild. He forced his attention into Pete, who was looking at him in confusion. 

“Yer tryin to get infermation on him?” he asked bewilderedly, gesturing towards Axel. “Couldn’tyer just ask ‘im?” Roxas couldn’t hold back a quick laugh as he stepped closer to his laptop and the man in front of it. 

“I need to WATCH his information,” was his cryptic response before he called back to the redhead, “how’s it doing, Axe?” 

“Eighty-seven percent and going fast,” he answered automatically, watching Roxas’ face closely. The blonde nodded and turned towards the file on screen. 

“When it hits at about ninety-five percent, we should start seeing some action,” he said mostly to himself, leaning in towards the file. Next to the mugshot, Axel’s physical stats were listed, and below both, the text of the file began. As much as he really wasn’t trying to snoop, words jumped out at him, like “seven officers to subdue” and “three in critical condition at Celebration Health Hospital.” Suddenly, a large chunk of the text on screen disappeared. “Here we go. Watch this,” he waved for Axel to come closer and see what was happening, and the redhead obeyed, eyes locked on the screen along with Pete, who’s mouth had dropped open. Next to go were all of his stats, blinking off the screen, and Axel gasped softly as Pete shook his head with a bemused grin. 

“I hope yer know what yer doin, pipsqueak. If they figure out whatcher up to, yer in fer a world of hurt,” he chuckled and sat back, folding his arms behind his head. Roxas swallowed hard, trying to ignore the warning, as he watched the wonder in Axel’s eyes as his criminal record disappeared in front of him. 

As the last of the page was wiped, leaving the search for Axel as blank as Roxas’ had been, Axel’s phone played the victory sound from one of Roxas’ favorite RPGs and then announced in a feminine voice, “Security protocols complete. Stay safe out there.” With a whoop of joy, Axel grabbed Roxas into a huge bear hug, lifting him off the ground as he spun him around in the air, congratulating him excitedly. 

“Oh my Gaia Roxas you DID it!” he praised the blonde right in his ear before setting him back down on the ground as he let go. “You’re amazing,” he laughed, looking at his phone in wonder. “Can I take the card out or does it have to stay in to work?” Roxas beamed, pulling the card out of Axel’s phone himself. 

“Just let me know when you get a new phone,” he teased, pocketing the tiny card. “Once it’s up, it’ll be good to go. And I don’t think your deleted file is coming back any time soon, unless the police department backs up individual files externally.” He shot Pete a quizzical look at those words, but the heavyset man merely shrugged. 

“Told yer I don’t know nuttin’ bout those machines,” he grumbled, rising to his feet. “Now, if yer done wit me, I gotta get back to tha streets. Don’t fergit who saved tha day, neither!” With a wide, sweeping wave, he made a hasty exit from the room, leaving the two alone again. Axel was beside himself; he clearly didn’t even know what to do with himself as he beamed at the petite blonde and paced quickly in different directions with an excited air, rather than anxiety like before. 

“Roxy, you’re a genius. And I know it was just running a test, but I can’t begin to tell you how...grateful I am that you did that for me. The things they have on file...I’ve been trying to run from for quite some time. It was fucking great to watch it disappear. Gaia, I could kiss you right now.” As he spoke, his darting movements stilled until he stopped completely as he admitted the last. Once the words were out of his mouth, his eyes locked onto the smaller man’s and his grin grew more purposeful as he strode towards Roxas, speaking again as he took large, sinuous steps towards him. “You. You’re sexy, you’re funny, you’re caring, you’re a great gamer...isn’t that enough? You have to be brilliant and recklessly brave, too?” At this point he was invading the blonde’s personal space, forcing him back against the built-in desk as he continued his advance. When he could move no further back and Axel took a final step forward, body pressing against the smaller man as he used two fingers to gently tilt Roxas’ chin, the blonde found himself trapped, with his face angled up towards the taller man. “Are you just trying to prove you’re too good for me? I already knew that; it’s not gonna stop me,” he said in a quieter, more glorious voice than Roxas had ever heard him use before before he began to slowly lean down. 

“Axel, I-“ Roxas tried to object, but the hands that lifted to try to push the man back fell limply onto Axel’s chest as their lips met and an inferno exploded within him. It was as if every nerve he had were suddenly set ablaze, the fire coursing through him burning away every objection and reasonable thought he had and leaving only a desperation and need so intense that he quickly lost control. Axel was everywhere; towering over him, pinning him against the desk, one hand lifted up to cradle his head and keep him in place while the other was toying with the hem of his shirt, beginning to work its way underneath the garment and up along the sensitive skin of his side. Roxas let him, refusing to think about anything beyond that exact moment, and then let out a gasp as Axel’s fingers danced their way over his side and ribs, unintentionally giving the redhead further access. Axel took quick advantage, delving his tongue searchingly, teasingly, into the blonde’s mouth to entwine with his, then pulling back infinitesimally to trace the contours of his lower lip. His hand had made its way around the curve of his ribs to his back, and it was then that he used it to press Roxas more firmly against himself, and Roxas found himself desperately responding to the man. The blonde moaned low in his throat, his hands coming to life with a mind of their own as they sprung into action; one twisted itself into red hair, tugging lightly to encourage Axel even closer while the other grabbed the waistline of the taller man’s jeans, fingertips just barely slipping between fabric and warm, soft skin. His tongue was dueling the other for dominance, darting into Axel’s mouth before pulling back as he nipped at the man’s lip and then continuing to leave small bites down Axel’s jaw and throat. Axel growled, the rumbling in his chest vibrating through Roxas, as a second hand joined the first underneath his shirt, and just as they began working in tandem to pull the fabric up... 

“Ahem.” An entirely unfamiliar voice to Roxas sounding from within the room had the blonde yanking himself away from the spot above Axel’s collarbone where he had been focused, while Axel himself simply froze in place with a snarl. While Roxas futility struggled for freedom, Axel merely withdrew his hands but kept Roxas firmly in place as he spoke to the intruder without turning around. 

“Which one of them ratted me out? Was it Legend? I fucking bet it was,” he hissed, then sighed and gave into Roxas’ struggling, stepping back and releasing the smaller man. As Roxas straightened up, tugging his shirt back into place, he looked around for the source of the voice and his eyes fell upon another tall, slender redhead, slightly older than Axel, standing just inside the door with his arms folded across his chest. He was wearing a suit like the other guards throughout the casino, but his sunglasses were folded into the v of the neckline of his dress shirt, which was untucked, partially unbuttoned, and missing the tie all the others had. His fiery hair was even longer than Axel’s, but pulled back into a ponytail at the nape of his neck, and while he also had facial tattoos, his were symmetrical red slashes that went from near his hairline and swept over his cheekbones. His eyes were also startlingly clear and bright, but the stranger’s were a cool blue rather than poisonous green, and they did not look amused in the slightest. 

“Doesn’t fucking matter, yo. What the fuck are you doing here at midnight on a Thursday, with Pete, and - Well, aren’t you a cutie, yo.” The man’s attention had drifted as he spoke until his eyes focused on Roxas and he winked cheekily at him with a quick smirk. Then they hardened and returned to glare at Axel. “Are we gonna have some trouble again, yo? Should we be watching out for anyone?” Axel rolled his eyes dramatically, leaning back against the desk and crossing his arms as if mirroring the man. 

“You know, me stopping by doesn’t ALWAYS mean there’s a crisis,” he said, earning a snort and an eye roll from the older man, and then went on, “and also, fuck you for that, you coulda caught us before we left.” Axel finished speaking with a bite to his voice, and the taller man laughed outright at that. 

“I’m fucking pissed, yo. Besides, haven’t you corrupted this sweet little thing enough?” It was Axel’s turn to laugh, reaching over and pushing Roxas lightly forward. 

“You’ve got it backwards this time, Reno. HE’S the one corrupting ME; I’m just here as the intermediary. And muscle,” he added, pretending to flex. Reno laughed warmly, eyeing Roxas with renewed interest, as dawning understanding registered in the blonde. This was Axel’s uncle, the one he and Kairi had mentioned living with. 

“Don’t buy that for a second, yo,” he retorted, than locked eyes with Roxas. “And if it is, you got one hell of a bad deal, yo. Next time, bring some muscle with MUSCLE,” and Axel gasped with mock indignation, clutching a hand over his heart as if wounded. 

“Ouch, I’m bleeding,” he moaned, then laughed, gesturing between the two. “Roxas, this is Reno, my overbearing uncle. Reno, this is...Roxas,” he finished with a gentle look that had Roxas blushing, even as the words themselves left his heart aching. Just Roxas, despite what the newcomer had interrupted. Reno stuck out a hand, and Roxas stumbled forward to shake it. 

“Nice to meet you,” he murmured softly, his conventional greeting coming as a knee-jerk reaction. He felt like an idiot. 

“Same, yo,” Reno answered, looking sincerely down at him before releasing his hand and turning back to Axel. “Well, if you’re not bringing the walls down around us tonight, then I gotta head back. You know how it is, yo.” Axel nodded, then rose and stepped forward to embrace the older redhead. 

“Yeah, yeah, I hear you. We should get outta here, too,” he said with the slightest twinge of regret to his tone, and Reno pushed him away with another laugh. 

“Call me, yo. It’s been too long since we caught up,” Reno finished with heavy implications behind his words, then turned on his heel and stepped quickly out of the room. Roxas busied himself with stowing away his laptop and cords, zipping his backpack fully and sliding it over his shoulder before he finally turned to face Axel, who was standing and watching him closely. 

“Roxy,” the man began, but even his stupid nickname wasn’t enough to bring a smile back to his face, and he cut Axel off quickly, trying to prolong the inevitable. 

“Can we just get outta here?” he pleaded, and though it was clear the redhead saw right through him, he nodded anyway, and led Roxas through the door. Now that they were on their way out, the casino didn’t feel as daunting, or maybe it was that his mood was so bleak that he no longer cared about the dangers; either way, Roxas found himself focused only on the small of Axel’s back as he followed him through the crowded area and to the hotel lobby. The woman that had directed them to Luxord initially called a cheerful ‘have a nice evening’ after them, but Axel didn’t even bother to look up at her, and Roxas was too preoccupied to spare her any attention. The elevator ride up to the parking level where Axel’s car was left Roxas fidgeting with a zipper on his backpack, and it seemed the longer Roxas went without speaking, the more anxious Axel became. When the car came into view ahead, Roxas wondered if it had been a wise choice to put off talking until they were truly alone, but Axel simply let them in, gunned the car to life, and pulled them out of the parking space. In fact, it wasn’t until the bright lights of the casino were beginning to disappear behind them that he tried again, and it was clear he wasn’t going to take no for an answer by the tone in his voice. 

“Roxas.” The call of his name seemed to crack through the silence, making Roxas flinch, but he unwillingly looked over to Axel. 

“Yes,” he answered flatly, and saw Axel’s knuckles go white where they were gripping the steering wheel. He was expecting frustration, maybe even anger, or a quick dismissal of his feelings, so the pain in Axel’s voice sent him reeling. 

“What’s wrong, Roxy? First you’re all over me, then you want nothing to do with me, and I just...I don’t know what I- are you upset that I kissed you again? I’m sorry, but you seemed- oh fucking Gaia...Roxas, please don’t cry,” he trailed off helplessly as a single, traitorous tear slipped down Roxas’ cheek, and the blonde swiped it away angrily, turning to stare out the window as the dark, unfamiliar city whipped past. 

“I’m not- it’s nothing, Axel. It’s fine,” he snapped, leaning his forehead against the cool glass and trying to get himself under control. He wasn’t a fucking child, why was he fighting back tears over something so stupid? He didn’t need a title, a definition, a category for whatever it was between them. It shouldn’t hurt so much that he didn’t have one. He was being childish, ridiculous, stup- 

“Please,” Axel whispered, his strained voice breaking through Roxas’ self-loathing monologue. “I can’t- I don’t know what set you off, how can I...fix things?” His voice was rough, thick, and he clearly didn’t know what to do or say, but there he was, trying. Roxas felt even worse. Axel had been clear, upfront, he had done what he could to avoid this situation; it was entirely Roxas’ own fault. He at least owed it to the man to tell him that it wasn’t really his doing; Axel had only been keeping in form with everything he had told Roxas. Then, suddenly, there was a hand reaching forward, wiping away another tear that was trailing its way unbidden and unnoticed down his cheek. It tore through the wall Roxas was trying to erect around his heart, and he turned back towards the redhead with anguish in his eyes. 

“Axel, it’s really...fine. It’s not you, it’s-“ but a bark of harsh laughter silenced him. 

“‘It’s not you, it’s me’? Man, I must have deluded myself, I thought I was worth more than that,” the taller man said, anger and pain warring in his voice. Roxas was quick to interject. 

“That’s not what I’m trying to- ugh!” Roxas held up his hand in a stopping gesture, as Axel had opened his mouth to speak again. “No, don’t just cut me off again, Axel. If you wanna hear it, then fine, but listen, because this time I’M the one who’s not gonna let us talk about this again. I’m just being stupid,” and after his outburst, Roxas was unable to keep the words from pouring out at Axel, who had been shocked into silence. “It IS just me, not you. All you’ve done is everything you promised to. Everything you warned me. I knew-I KNOW- how things are. This is exactly why I didn’t wanna hook up. DON’T want to. I just get carried away thinking things could be different or are different and it just...hurts. I’m selfish and I’m stupid and I’m doing it to myself, but it HURTS, okay? Just...can’t I just get over myself in peace for a little?” he begged, looking down at his fists clenched tightly in his lap. “I just need a few minutes...then I’ll be back to normal.” Axel looked like he was in agony, his expression twisted as if Roxas’ words were knives, ripping into him with every one that was spoken. When Roxas has fallen silent, his mouth opened and then closed again several times as he tried to get the words out. 

“Will you at least...tell me what crossed the line?” he managed hesitantly, seeming desperate to have something at least that he could classify as ‘too much’. Roxas gave a small, watery laugh. 

“No, because it’s stupid,” Roxas sighed, the devastation on Axel’s face too much to bear, and gave in. “It was when you introduced me to Reno. The...lack of definition, even when he’d seen you trying to-“ Roxas snapped his mouth shut, but Axel understood. 

“Ah,” he moaned tightly, understanding coloring the sound, and fell into silence along with Roxas. After ten minutes of this, Axel seemed to cave and rolled down the windows, lighting himself a cigarette. They pulled up to the dock, but the water stretched before them, ferry absent and presumably on the other side. A large, thickly muscled man stepped out of the booth and ambled to Axel’s side of the vehicle. Axel handed him their munny, and the man nodded, but gestured towards the empty dock. 

“I’ll call them now, but you’re gonna have a little wait,” he warned before turning and disappearing back into the tiny structure. Axel leaned back, cigarette smoke twisting up and spreading out along the roof of the car. 

“I’m so sorry, Roxy,” he sighed, ignoring the look Roxas shot him. “It’s not fair of me to expect you to endure all of this as if you had no heart. If I was more noble, or selfless, I’d just stop, leave you alone...” he trailed off as he watched the panic and pained grief wash over the smaller man, and let out a harsh rasp of a laugh. “I’m not, don’t worry. But that would be the right thing to do. I don’t WANT to see you hurt, Roxas. I want-“ There was an audible click of teeth as Axel clamped his jaws shut, biting off his words before they had a chance to cause Roxas even more pain, and he was somewhat grateful. 

“PLEASE let’s not talk about this, Red,” Roxas said, attempting to lighten the mood, but unable to think about anything but Axel’s words which still rang in his ears, he added, “and please don’t leave me all alone after everything. If you wanna give up on me, I can’t stop you, but...couldn’t we at least be friends?” Axel threw him a withering look. 

“You’re using all the classic breakup lines on me,” he noted unhappily. “Why does it feel like you want that when half an hour ago you were giving me hickies?” Roxas groaned, raking his fingers roughly through his hair. 

“I don’t know what I want, Axe. I don’t know what would make you happy that wouldn’t destroy me, and I don’t know how to balance on this edge. One of us is going to lose, eventually, and I’d just rather avoid that part for as long as possible. Can we just go back to how it was before I acted like a stupid-“ 

“Roxas, stop. Please,” Axel moaned, rubbing a hand across his face. “I’ll make you a deal, okay? Unless you have any objections, can we head to my place, get super drunk with whoever’s there and show Demyx your thing, and THEN have this conversation? Because I am WAY too sober right now to do this,” he said, peeking between his fingers at Roxas, who nodded and shrugged. 

“Sounds like a plan to me,” he said, leaning back like Axel had. “But I’m gonna make Demyx check in, because if I’m getting drunk enough for a ‘feelings’ talk, I’m gonna be drunk enough to make some huge mistakes.” 

“Fair enough,” Axel shrugged as well, and then the sound of the ferry’s horn announced its approach, causing both of them to sit forward quickly. The burly man stepped out again, unlocking the gate and waving them ahead, and then they were back on the water. As soon as Axel unbuckled and began to exit the vehicle, Roxas had already jumped out, glad to be able to pace off some of his nervous energy. The cool, salty air helped to clear the tension between them and Roxas found himself walking at an even pace beside Axel, the silence between them no longer excruciating. For a second, Roxas deliberated about putting in his headphones; he didn’t want to be rude, but music helped him channel his moods so much better than space and air ever could, and there was a song he had in mind. Even though it would probably eat him up inside. He went halfway, pulling his earbuds from their usual place in his pocket and popping one in. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Axel’s curious look as he quickly pulled up the song and started it. The singer’s beautiful, resounding voice did justice to the song far better than the original version; the desolation and remorse rang in every syllable. When he reached the first haunting chorus, he closed his eyes, letting it wash over him. When he opened them, he saw Axel standing still, staring at him questioningly. He hit pause, looking back up at the redhead, the words still ghosting through him. 

“What did you put on?” the taller man asked casually, beginning to walk again, and Roxas followed suit, a little embarrassed to admit what it was. 

“It’s a cover of a song,” he hedged, looking out over the water. “The guy, Jonathan Young, does a lot of different covers, but there’s something about this one...it speaks to me.” Axel had led them to lean up against the railings again, looking out over the water. 

“What’s the song?” came the next question, and Roxas rubbed the back of his head embarrassedly. 

“It’s from a movie...um, have you ever heard ‘Evermore’?” Axel’s eyes widened a fraction of an inch, but he held out his hand. 

“May I?” he asked, and Roxas obliged, handing him one of the earbuds and restarting the song for him. As the song played, Roxas found himself glancing at Axel repeatedly to gauge his reaction, but the redhead had leaned with his elbows on the railing in front of him and closed his eyes, clearly giving the song all of his attention. When the last exquisitely sung note ended and the music had faded into silence, Roxas stopped it and Axel opened his eyes, still looking forward towards the sea. “That was...powerful. Fuck, that was good.” Then he turned to Roxas, asking, “are all of his songs like that?” Roxas laughed. This, music, was a safe avenue to take; the song may have hit dangerously close to home emotionally, but as a topic of conversation, it was unlikely to draw them back to the tension from earlier. 

“No, but they’re all fucking awesome.” The ferry horn sounded, making Roxas jump, and then he laughed. “Wanna check him out til we get back?” 

“He’s not the only one I’m gonna be checking out,” teased the redhead, heading back towards the car with a wink and leaving Roxas to catch up. 

The rest of the trip back to Axel and Demyx’s house was a blur of good music, teasing, lighthearted jokes, and laughter. Since many of the songs were covers from movies both had known since childhood, they sang along frequently. As the scenery flashing past them grew more familiar, Axel pulled out another cigarette, and Roxas pulled out his own lighter, sparking it to life before Axel had a chance. 

“Thanks,” the redhead mumbled around the end in his mouth, breathing deeply as Roxas held the flame to the tip, then blew the cloud of smoke out the window. “You stoner,” he added with a wink. Roxas stuck his tongue out at the taller man. 

“Hey, you never know when you’re gonna need one,” Roxas defended with a chuckle. Axel nodded, then changed the subject. 

“So how are you gonna tell Demyx? Because let me tell you, if I hadn’t seen it in action for myself, I wouldn’t have believed it would really work. That’s some serious fucking coding you did,” Axel said, the praise sending a wave of satisfaction through the blonde. 

“I screengrabbed the whole thing,” Roxas admitted, and saw unease take over the redhead’s face. “I was gonna let him see for himself.” Axel swallowed hard before speaking. 

“Rox, I gotta own up to what Pete pulled up on me,” he said, focusing on the road ahead rather than the man beside him. “I’d rather you hear it from me than go back and read what the police report says.” Roxas looked at him, suddenly apprehensive, but Axel was still avoiding eye contact. “Obviously, Reno works for the people who run Oogie’s. I got into a bar fight with a handful of people one night, and it was bad, Rox, REALLY bad. I sent several of them to a hospital. Well, turns out they were working for competitors of Reno’s boss, and they thought I was Reno when word got back...long story short, it took both Pete and Reno, and a whole hell of a lot of trouble, to get me out of that mess. If Reno wasn’t such a favorite over there, I don’t know that they would have bothered.” He shuddered at the thoughts those words brought him, and Roxas did the same. The car rolled to a stop and Roxas jolted, realizing that somehow they were in the driveway already without him noticing. Axel finally looked him nervously, but then a sheepish grin overtook him and he rubbed the back of his head at Roxas face, who wore a stern look over a smile he couldn’t fight off. 

“Without knowing all the details...that was probably really dumb and dangerous,” he began, but then his smile grew. “But it’s over and you’re here and safe? I wasn’t gonna go snoop through your stuff, though, Axel. It really was just a product test. I’m so fucking stoked to give it to Demyx. Gonna call it a super early Christmas present.” Axel laughed, pushing his door open and exiting the vehicle, and Roxas did the same, pulling out his phone to check the time as he did so. Then he skidded to a halt; it was almost three in the morning. The chances that Demyx would still be conscious were slim at best. “Uh, Axel?” he called to the redhead, who had ignored his lack of movement and continued on towards the house. “There’s no way Demyx is up,” he muttered, hurrying to catch up and stop the redhead, who was now unlocking the side door. 

“Probably not,” Axel agreed when Roxas had caught up, “but we made a deal.”


	16. Chapter Sixteen

Roxas’ guess had been correct-when they entered the house, it was completely dark and silent and still. Axel had quickly raided the freezer, then led him upstairs, where he reminded Roxas they were going to get super drunk with whoever was there before showing him a bottle of absinthe he had brought along with them. For about an hour, the pair proceeded to get drunk, smoking and taking turns pulling up music to show the other while they did so. Finally, Axel leaned back on the couch, arms crossed behind his head as he stared at the ceiling. 

“I love this time of night,” he mused thoughtfully, watching the ceiling fan blades spin around slowly. “This is when it seems like everyone speaks more freely, more openly. Something about the middle of the night that brings things out of people.” 

“Mmm,” Roxas hummed, leaning back next to the redhead and letting his head fall back onto the couch cushion behind him, almost touching the other’s shoulder. “Sure the absinthe helps.” Axel chuckled, looking down at the blonde. 

“You’re so cute,” he said fondly, “did it really hurt your feelings so much when I introduced you no Reno?” The offhanded way he asked the question, offset by the compliment, had Roxas answer rolling from between his lips before he had time to stop himself; from Axel’s triumphant smirk, that had been his plan. 

“Yes, it did. He watches you on top of me, and then I’m just...Roxas. Just some guy. Interchangeable, nothing special.” He ended sadly, grabbing the absinthe off the table and putting it to his lips, slamming a small shot straight from the bottle. Axel looked at him like the statement hurt. 

“You ARE special. Do you think I woulda taken just anyone to a shady casino hours away in the middle of the night to meet a crooked cop?” He smirked teasingly, took the bottle from Roxas, and poured a generous amount into the cup he had been drinking from. Taking a deep swig, he added, “It may have sounded like a snub to you, Roxy, but I’ve never introduced anyone but Demyx to Reno.” Roxas felt his eyes go wide. He hadn’t thought of that, in his blind jump to desolation. Demyx had told him, he knew, but in the moment he had completely forgotten. Still... 

“I just get down about it, Axe. It’s fine, I have it back in control.” Then, in a much smaller voice, Roxas found himself asking, “you wouldn’t really just ditch me, would you?” Axel looked away, taking another long drink. 

“I don’t even know if that would help anymore,” he said in a faraway voice, “I think things are well past that being an unharmful situation.” Roxas relaxed, and his head rolled into Axel’s shoulder. He didn’t really register it at first, and by the time he did, Axel had looked down at him with a soft smile, distracting him. “And I’m too selfish for that, anyways. I like moments like this too much.” The blonde sighed, but didn’t move away like he should have. 

“It’s sad, though. Because as nice as the moment is, it ends, and I can’t do it again whenever I want. And all the other things I want, they’re out of reach, too.” Axel looked torn, wavering between longing and fear, but Roxas wasn’t through with his tirade, now that he’d gotten started. “As much as I love every second of time I spend with you, there’s this looming knowledge that at any moment you might just get bored with me and move on. That none of it means anything to you except fun times, but to me, it’s real and it’s serious and it’s everything I want and exactly what could hurt me the most. I wish you could understand how much it tears you apart, desperately wanting something like that from someone who will never-“ 

“Rox,” Axel groaned loudly, stopping the outpour of words and causing the blonde’s head to snap up in his direction. “I think I have feelings for you.” He forced the words from between gritted teeth, as if he was admitting something terrible. “That’s what all this is fucking for,” he raised his glass in a salute, then downed the rest of the contents, “I knew I’d never get it out sober. I don’t know what to do with it, either,” he growled. “What I want hasn’t changed, not really, but...this is complicating things.” Roxas was speechless. Axel...had feelings for him? Beyond just wanting to get in his pants, Axel really- 

When his brain finally caught up, Roxas gasped and threw himself at the redhead, swinging his leg around to straddle the man’s lap as he grabbed both sides of his face, holding him in place as he kissed Axel with surprising gentleness. Axel whimpered low in his throat, but responded quickly, moving his hands to Roxas’ hips as he kissed the blonde back and his eyes slipped shut. It was close-lipped and sweet, nothing like the others had been, and when Roxas tried to initiate more after a few moments, Axel drew back gently. 

“Not this time, sweetheart,” he whispered softly, laughing at Roxas’ pout. “Just because Demyx isn’t here doesn’t mean you can’t trust me. You’ll thank me later.” 

“I doubt it,” the smaller man said dubiously, collapsing on top of Axel as if exhausted and suddenly giggling. “I always want to kiss you when I’m too drunk.” 

“I know,” Axel teased, attempting to slide the blonde off his lap. “But you’re not helping anything.” 

“Can I crash on your couch?” Roxas asked, still in a fit of giggles, but quickly stopped as Axel shook his head. 

“Nope,” he said cheerfully, and then smiled mischievously as he stood. “It’s these stupid feelings, Roxy...I don’t think I can let you stay over and sleep on the couch anymore.” Roxas was staring at him blankly, unsure of what to do. 

“Oh, um...I guess I can walk,” he said bewilderedly, trying to stand but losing balance and crashing back down onto the couch. Axel chuckled softly, and then suddenly Roxas was in the air; Axel had leaned down and scooped him up, cradling Roxas to his chest. 

“Nope! Can’t do that either,” Axel commanded; he carried Roxas around the couch, stopping to pull the cord to turn off the lights, and to the side of his bed before dropping him lightly onto it. “Guess you’ll have to sleep here.” Roxas went pale, but then his hazy mind dismissed his concerns and pushed him gently away from consciousness. He wasn’t aware of himself as he laid back and looked at Axel blankly, reaching for the man as he sat down on the bed as well. Axel nudged him. 

“Scoot over, Blondie,” he pushed again and Roxas rolled away laughing. 

“You’re so pushy. I bet that’s gonna be super hot,” Roxas purred with only a slight slur, and Axel growled at him. 

“NO, you little monster, you’re LITERALLY sleeping here. Go to sleep,” His grumpy voice was made less so by the little smile he couldn’t hide as he laid down on the edge of the bed, facing Roxas. However at his words, Roxas had rolled his way back, and ended up half on top of the redhead. 

“But Axel,” he whined, still unable to control his laughter even as he tried blearily to persuade the other, “I keep ending up right here, so close, and I never get my way. Why is it that whenever I finally relax, you back down?” 

“Oh Gaia above and below, ENOUGH,” Axel said emphatically, then added in a softer voice, “You’re ruining the moment. Come here.” He rolled Roxas over until he was laying on his side, wrapped in Axel’s arms, and buried his face in soft, blonde spikes. “See? Isn’t this better?” Roxas’ hands had fallen on Axel’s chest, and he lightly ran his fingers across the planes of his torso. 

“Mmm,” he hummed, snuggling closer against the redhead and tucking his head under his chin. “S’perfect.” Axel’s arms tightened around him infinitesimally, and then he placed a kiss on the crown of the smaller man’s head. 

“Sleep well, Rox,” he said softly, losing himself in thought as the man in his arms gradually stilled and his breathing grew slow and even. He stayed like that for a long time, absently tracing patterns on Roxas’s back with the tips of his fingers; so long, in fact, that he was absolutely certain the blonde was asleep when he began to mumble quietly. 

Axel focused in on the man in his arms, and managed to make out, “no, not like...the suit’s too small!” A sleepy smile spread slowly across his face as he closed his eyes and listened to Roxas, who was quiet again for a while before he spoke once more, this time louder and clear as day; “See, Ven, this is Axel. He’s my Axel.” Fighting to stay awake, unable to open his eyes or rise from the dragging pull of sleep, a smile touched his lips as he agreed. 

“Your Axel.”


	17. Chapter Seventeen

Demyx was trying not to have a panic attack. When he’d heard the news about Tidus from the guy’s distraught girlfriend Yuna, he’d been devastated; he and Tidus had always played with each other over the summers of their childhood, when their families vacationed together at the beach. Little did he know, however, that it would be the beginning of the biggest sweep he’d ever seen in Destiny Islands since he’d started selling pot. After Tidus came a guy they both knew vaguely, an annoying asshole of a blonde named Seifer. That wasn’t a huge loss. Next came a friend of Demyx’s dealer, a big, gruff guy whom Demyx had only ever had the displeasure of meeting once. A girl he knew sold weed around a bunch of local high schools and thought of herself as a ninja. A longtime customer who was known around campus as a huge stoner. As the list grew, so did Demyx’s anxiety and concern for his friends. When even customers were getting busted for possession left and right, he started keeping closer tabs on his closest friends, especially Axel and Roxas; one his brother in all ways but blood, the other who had quickly become one of the closest friends he’d ever had. He hated the strain the constant fear put on him, as it was his nature to be carefree, and there was no real reason for his concern; logically, he KNEW that, but the night before, both of them stopped replying to his messages relatively early on in the evening, and now here he was halfway through the class he shared with his diminutive blonde friend and he still hadn’t seen or heard from either. To be fair, the panic hadn’t really started until the professor began speaking and Demyx realized Roxas hadn’t ever taken his place. Or texted him back. And neither had Axel. Had Axel come home last night? He hadn’t known to be worried when he left for class...he then sent several texts and waited to hear something, but the longer the professor droned on, the more worst-case scenarios Demyx was able to come up with. They could have been busted smoking a joint out somewhere together. Axel could have been in another fight, Roxas could have jumped in to help, and both could be in jail. What if it wasn’t even police related? What if they’d gotten in a terrible car accident? What if Roxas’ apartment had burned down with them trapped inside? Shit, when had he last heard from Kairi or Sora? Another text went out, and then another. He drummed his fingers in a frantic staccato on his des for a moment of two when his phone vibrated and he fumbled with it, bringing the text up. 

Friday 10:21 A.M. 

You: hey kiddo, how have you been? 

You: also, have you seen or heard from rox or your brother recently? 

Kai: last time I saw them was when they holed up in Roxas’ room yesterday afternoon...why? Is everything okay? 

Kai: want me to go check and see if they’re here? 

You: would you? It’s probably nothing, I bet they just crashed and haven’t checked their phones yet 

Friday 10:27 A.M. 

Kai: no one here. I don’t know when they left, but Roxas’ bed is made and Axel’s sketchbook was laying out on it 

Kai: Demyx whats going on 

You: really, it’s probably nothing. They just both stopped texting me around the same time yesterday and I haven’t seen or heard from either since. Just checking in 

You: lately I don’t like when I can’t locate someone quickly, you know? 

Kai: Yeah man. I’ll let you know when I hear from someone but I bet you’re right 

Demyx set his phone back down, trying not to be sick. There was no reason for him to be so anxious. They were probably just sleeping it off somewhere. They were FINE. He laid his head down on his desk, willing time to pass by faster, and got his wish a few moments later when the professor ended his lecture, announcing that a pop quiz was being handed out. The quiz would double as attendance, and they were free to take as long as they wanted before handing it in and being dismissed for the day. Demyx was practically bouncing in his seat waiting for the stack of blank exams to make its way to him so he could begin. He decided to just skim it and fill in ones he knew rather than wasting time thinking hard on ones he didn’t; it was only one quiz, right? So when he got it, he glanced through hopefully, only to feel grim with what he had surmised. He knew a few, like the definition of atmospheric perspective and what a memento muri was, but the majority of the questions might as well have been written in a foreign language. He was pretty sure no mention of a ‘condottiere’ has ever been made, and not a single guess as to what ‘slippery, dark, greenish-grey Florentine Macigno from Fiesole’ was used in multiple chapels. He quickly jotted down the few answers he knew and stood, uncaring that he was the first one done, grabbed his stuff, and walked quickly down to the front. Without looking around, he slapped the page down and beelined out of the room, hurried footsteps carrying him away from the building quickly. He dialed Axel’s number first; and it rang for several long minutes before going to voicemail. He had reached the bus stop and was marching past it now as called Roxas. His went straight to voicemail, like it was turned off, or dead. Their house was coming into view up ahead. He tugged his keys out of his pocket, twisting them to find the one that would fit into the front door. When he tried Axel again, he got the same result; the phone rang until it started the message. He rounded their mailbox, taking the walkways a jog, and shoved his key in the lock. He dialed Axel again and pushed open the front door. From upstairs, the sound of Axel’s ringtone for Demyx played. He dashed up the stairs, taking them two at a time until he reached Axel’s door, yanked it open, and burst inside...to find himself frozen by a death glare from Axel. 

“I’m going to fucking kill you,” he watched Axel mouth as he took in the scene before him. Axel’s phone was on the coffee table in front of the small couch, ringing away out of reach of the redhead in the bed. Demyx quickly hung up on his end, silencing the ringing. Axel was in bed, shooting daggers with his eyes over his shoulder, unable to roll over or get up because in his arms...cradled in his arms, head pillowed by his chest, was a peacefully sleeping blonde. Either he had finally caved and hooked up with someone who looked a hell of a lot like Roxas, or... “Did you-“ he began to demand of the redhead, but clapped a hand over his own mouth when the small bundle in Axel’s arms began to stir. “I’m going to make you suffer for that,” Axel hissed quietly before focusing his attention down on the man he held. Knowing that no matter what had happened, it was too late to do anything about it now, and that this was a conversation he would NOT be welcome to overhear, Demyx crept slowly backwards out of the room. He heard Axel’s quiet, comforting, “Morning,” before he shut the door with a faint click. Well...at least they weren’t in jail?


	18. Chapter Eighteen

A sharp, angry sound was what first had Roxas stirring. He felt more than heard a voice rumbling, vibrations from the sound pulsing through his hands. That wasn’t right, was it? How could his warm pillow be talking? Then he blearily opened his eyes to see what was going on, and saw an expanse of fabric stretching across his vision. That definitely wasn’t right, what was- 

“Morning,” came a soft, satisfied voice, and Roxas’ eyes sprang fully open. He was encased in Axel’s arms, nose just barely brushing against his shirt. He was in Axel’s bed again, this time not alone. His eyes darted down to note that he was fully clothed, and once his initial panic faded, he let the memories of the previous night wash over him. Their surreal trip to Oogie Boogie’s. Meeting Reno. Coming back here to get drunk. Talking about feelings. Axel’s feelings. Being carried to bed? Things got a little fuzzy around there. His mind quickly returned to Axel’s admission, and it was with that is his heart that he returned his focus to the redhead. Axel was looking at him, seemingly content to just watch him wake up, and his eyes were sparkling emeralds of warmth. He was warm everywhere, surrounding the blonde with comfort, fingers delicately drawing random shapes on his back. Roxas was overjoyed, triumphant; Axel had feelings for him as well. Then his eyes tightened the smallest amount as he remembered Axel’s frustration with them, knowing deep down that last night really hadn’t changed anything, just enhanced his own growing emotions. 

“Good morning,” he said quietly, toying with the fabric of Axel’s shirt where it lay beneath his hands. “Thanks for being my pillow.” Axel snorted with light laughter but quickly stilled again, even though the smile remained in place. 

“No problem,” he said easily, and the man seemed more relaxed and content than Roxas had ever seen him. He was absolutely stunning. 

“You look happy,” Roxas simply noted, then buried his face in Axel’s chest. He had to ask soon. This moment wasn’t going to be able to last long, but Roxas would give almost anything to stay there forever. He stalled, instead. “Was I much trouble after you got me on the bed? That’s about the last thing I can remember,” he asked unhurriedly, and Axel shook his head. 

“Not much,” he allowed, and Roxas chuckled, but the sound was quickly followed by his sigh. 

“As much as I want to lay here with you forever, I need to know where we stand, Red. I just...need to know my boundaries.” It was Axel’s turn to sigh, and then suddenly he tightened his hold, crushing Roxas to his chest in a vice like hold. As Roxas struggled for freedom, Axel growled at him playfully, tucking the smaller man more securely against him. 

“But right now, I don’t WANT boundaries,” he snarled, rolling on top of Roxas and pinning the small blonde beneath him. “I don’t WANT you thinking about going anywhere. I don’t want...” he trailed off, some of the spark dimming from his eyes. Watching that hurt Roxas deeply. As Axel moved to get off of him, Roxas quickly reached out and grabbed two fistfuls of his shirt, stopping him before he could. 

“How about this,” he started quickly, slowing once he was sure he had Axel’s attention and that the man wasn’t trying to go anywhere. It felt beyond intimate, being trapped beneath Axel, who was holding himself off Roxas with an arm on either side of his head and staring down at him. He could think of a lot of things he wanted to ask of Axel while he was in this position, and him leaving was decidedly NOT one of them. “How about...when we get out of bed, things are just the same as before, just...with more knowledge, I guess. Figure out what you want to do, I’m in no rush...you obviously know I’ve had feelings for you for a while now.” Axel nodded slowly, seeming to consider his words, and he added quietly, “are we still going on that date tonight?” The fire returned to Axel’s eyes, dancing there playfully. 

“Unless you’re planning on canceling on me,” Axel quipped, then continued, “I can’t help but notice that you specified ‘once we leave the bed’...” Roxas reached up, running his fingers through red hair before catching the end of a strand and toying with the bit. 

“I’m not really quite ready for you to go,” he said distractedly, as if the small tuft of hair were the most interesting thing in the world. He didn’t miss the predatory grin slowly spread across the face of the man above him, however, and then Axel leaned down, his breath tickling Roxas’ ear as he spoke. 

“Good, because I didn’t really want to get off you yet, either.” Then the very top of his tongue traced the shell of Roxas’ ear, making him shudder. He dropped the hair in his hand in favor of a handful closer to the roots, and pulled Axel down for a kiss. After a few moments, Axel shifted himself, knee pushing between the blonde’s legs as he went, and Roxas broke their kiss with a sharp intake of breath. 

“Umm, yep, and this is when we get out of bed. Besides, it’s Friday, I have to get to...class?” he ended with a question as Axel had started shaking his head. 

“You’re WAY too late for that, cutie. I think Demyx is back from class waiting to talk to us, actually. Are you gonna give him the thing?” Axel’s voice grew excited, clearly anticipating their friend’s reaction. Roxas grinned in response, pushing gently on Axel’s chest to get him off so he could sit up. 

“I just need to reload it onto the SD card...it’s single-use, deletes itself once it loads onto the phone,” he said absentmindedly, sliding off the bed and stretching before heading to where his backpack and laptop lay abandoned by the coffee table. “Check the screengrab, load it up...do you think I could talk you into making me a cup of coffee?” He looked up at Axel pleadingly, making exaggerated puppy dog eyes at him, and Axel groaned as he got to his feet as well. 

“Oh, alright. I need to find Dem anyway. Promise I won’t give away the surprise,” he added as he exited the room and Roxas sat down to work. He pulled the tiny card from where it still lay in his pocket and plugged it into the computer, beginning the program’s download. Then he pulled up the screen capture from the previous night. He had started it while he set up his laptop and left it running until they left, so it had everything; Roxas needed to find the part he was looking for and shorten the video to just that part. Then, for good measure and Axel’s peace of mind, he blurred out the text surrounding the mugshot, showing it was there but not what was written. As he saved the file, Axel returned, a cup of coffee in each hand. 

“Thanks,” he murmured gratefully, accepting one of them. “Just finished up.” Axel grinned wolfishly. 

“Perfect. Dem’s downstairs loading us an apology bowl right now. Come on.” He held out a hand to Roxas, pulling him upright, and the two walked together down the hall. 

“What’s he apologizing for?” Roxas asked, struggling to carry his laptop, phone, SD card, and coffee. He really should have made use of his pockets. Axel clearly saw this and relieved him of his coffee cup, leaving his hand free to balance everything. 

“He got all bent out of shape that we didn’t answer our phones or check in...busted into the room in a full-on panic when he got back from class. That’s what woke you up,” he grumped as they walked into the living room. Demyx looked up sheepishly at the pair, rubbing the back of his head with his hand and holding out the bong. 

“Yeah well, it’s because I care? At least I worry,” he defended himself as Axel rolled his eyes and Roxas took the bong from him. Then, with a mischievous wink at Roxas, Axel sauntered his way over to his chair near Demyx and fell into it. 

“You’re ALWAYS worried now. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could just get back to normal? I miss the old Demyx.” That drew a hurt-looking frown from the taller blonde. 

“Geez, Axe, cut me some slack, I’m watching people I know getting snapped up left and right, and you’re...laughing?” His tone became bewildered as Roxas and Axel exchanged a look and then began chuckling. “Why are you laughing at me?” Roxas sparked the bowl, taking a huge hit before handing the glassware to the redhead and beginning to set up his laptop. 

“Dem, our little Roxy here has been working his ass off, and doing some pretty baller things, to make you an early Christmas present,” Axel teased gleefully before he took his own hit. 

“But it’s just barely November?” Demyx said questioningly, watching Roxas as he pulled up the video and then turned to face him. 

“Yeah well...you’ll see why I’m giving it to you now in just a second,” Roxas assured, waiting for Demyx to take his hit and then taking the piece back from him. “I was doing the final product test last night, that’s why we were busy.” Demyx was now leaning forward excitedly, waiting, so Roxas brought the video full-screen and hit play. On screen, you saw the search for Roxas with no results for several seconds, and while that filled the screen and Demyx puzzled over what he was looking at, Roxas asked, “Dem, hand me your phone?” Demyx did as he was told, eyes going from the computer to what Roxas was doing with his phone and then back again. Roxas plugged the tiny SD card into the port on Demyx’s phone and handed it back, instructing, “don’t touch it, just watch.” Then he began to explain. “What’s on screen is what the police will be able to find when they run a search for your number on their database; absolutely nothing, like they’ve typed the number in wrong.” As Demyx’s eyes bugged out and his mouth dropped open in disbelief, Roxas pointed to his phone. “It’s downloading now, it will automatically run all it’s processes to get it set up. Watch this part here. I ran a search on Axel and then downloaded my app to his phone. This shows you real-time what it does.” Demyx was glued to the screen, nose less than a foot away, as he watched the numbers appearing in the search bar and then Axel’s mugshot and the blurred text appeared; he completely missed the surprised look Axel gave Roxas, and the smaller man’s nod and wink. After another several seconds, areas of blurred lines began to disappear. 

“What the everloving fuck,” Demyx whispered frantically as his roommate’s criminal record disappeared before his eyes. When the picture of Axel finally blinked out of existence, leaving the results page pristinely white, Demyx tore his eyes away from the screen and looked absolutely flabbergasted as his eyes locked with the smaller blonde’s. Then the Victory Fanfare sounded from Demyx’s lap. 

“Security protocols complete. Stay safe out there,” came the digital voice, and it was done. He smirked as Demyx stared at his phone, and then his head snapped up. 

“Roxas, what have you DONE?!” he screeched, “Oh my fucking Gaia, you brilliant, wonderful, amazing, talented human being, I could kiss you right now!” Axel leaned forward with a snarl that had Demyx backtracking quickly like his very life depended on it. “No, I mean that like the expression, I wouldn’t really kiss you, Rox, but I can’t...WOW. I don’t even know what to say.” He clicked into the app and started reading the tabs that held descriptions of what the program did. “This is unbelievable.” Axel sat back with a laugh. 

”He got it done in like a month, too. He’s literally been doing nothing else,” Axel bragged, making Roxas blush. 

“I did it because I worry too, alright?” he said, embarrassed. Demyx suddenly looked thoughtful. 

“Is it traceable back to you?” Demyx asked, but Roxas shook his head. 

“The program won’t trace back to me, I made sure. The SD is a one-time-use sort of thing; the program deletes the original so the drive is wiped in case it’s found later. I like to cover all my bases,” he answered proudly, and Demyx’s gaze grew hopeful. 

”Dude, can I make you some money?” Axel looked on with interest as Roxas stared blankly at his friend. 

“What do you mean?” That drew an outright grin from the taller blonde. He pulled the tiny card from his phone and held it out to Roxas. 

“This is GENIUS. If you can get me a handful of these, I know enough people who would kill for this that we could be banking. Like I could sell thirty of these right now no matter what price I put on ‘em, especially if I could show off that video.” Roxas was still just staring at him, his brain struggling to make sense of Demyx’s words. 

“I hadn’t thought of that,” he admitted slowly. “Yeah, sure, I can’t see what would be wrong with that. I’ll need to go get a stack of those micro SDs,” Roxas mused, and Demyx cheered. 

”Bet I can sell you out of them faster than you can make ‘em!” he challenged, scooping up his phone. “Will you email me the video clip?” Axel suddenly appeared behind Roxas, a hand resting lightly on his shoulder as the redhead leaned down to whisper in his ear. 

“Come with me, we’ll go pick some up and talk about that date,” he hummed softly, and that was more than enough encouragement for the small blonde, who quickly sent the file and hopped up. 

“Good to go! See ya Dem!” he said quickly, moving to follow Axel as he moved lithely from the room. Demyx stopped him. 

“Hey, thank you for this, Rox. For making this for me. Love ya, bro.” Roxas smiled embarrassedly, waving off the taller blonde. 

“Anything to keep you safe, man,” he said, before adding a hurried goodbye and running after Axel. The redhead was leaning against the hood of the car when Roxas caught up. 

“Ready, shortie?” Axel smirked, pushing away from the vehicle and walking around to his side of the car as Roxas slid in on the other. 

“Always, Red. So what’s the plan?” Roxas asked eagerly, buckling in. Axel looked thoughtfully at him before starting the car and pulling them away from the house. 

“Would it be silly to make you dress up and take you somewhere nice? Or maybe a movie or something?” the man asked uncertainly, and Roxas felt his heart flutter in his chest. 

“Nope, that’s pretty normal, date-wise,” he teased, “but we can do whatever you want. I’m a pretty easy date; I’m more concerned about the company than the setting.” 

“Oh, Gaia, I never thought about bringing company for you!” Axel pretended to gasp, and Roxas punched his shoulder lightly. 

“You dare try to let anyone else tag along and I’ll leave,” Roxas threatened playfully. “The only company I want is yours. That’s like, the only part that matters.” Axel’s eyes flashed with something as he threw a competitive look at the blonde. 

“You sure about that? What if the date’s really awful, or cheesy?” he asked as he pulled them into the parking lot of Cid’s, the local electronics and computer parts retailer. “I feel like my company’s not the only important thing here, Roxy.” They got out, Roxas leading the way into the store, and he shook his head emphatically. 

“Nope, I can say with almost complete certainty that I’m gonna enjoy it no matter where you take me.” Axel stepped forward to pull the door open before Roxas could and caught the blonde’s eye as he did so. 

“I bet I can take you on a date so bad, you’ll be begging me to end it,” he said confidently, and his tone made it clear he had something in mind. 

“Axel,” he said in a warning tone, but he could already see the gears spinning in the taller man’s mind. 

“Here’s my offer; I take you on the worst, most cliche date in the world. If it’s bad enough that you ask me to end it at any point, I win; I’ll take you somewhere else, where the ambiance is more tastefully considered, and maybe I get a little leniency on what you consider a first-date-level kiss goodnight?” He threw a sidelong glance at Roxas, who was now perusing the isles to find the micro SD cards he was looking for. The small blonde groaned loudly, but found what he was looking for and headed down the row. 

“What’s with you and bets? And why do you sound so sure of yourself? Ugh,” he sighed when Axel just gave him a too-innocent look. “What’s in it for me if I make it through?” Axel thought for a second. 

“What do you want?” Roxas have that some consideration while he pulled an entire stack of tiny, cheap, low storage micro SD cards off the hook they were hung on. He counted, then pulled the entire next row as well. What did he want? At this point, he was just hoping against hope that Axel would decide to overlook everything from his past, his trauma from his childhood, and gamble on budding new emotions that he wasn’t even happy about having. Roxas pushed back from his negativity, asking himself what would help Axel achieve the impossible goal Roxas was wishing for. He headed for the register, still deep in thought. Maybe he was looking at this the wrong way; maybe he should ask for something that he wouldn’t get from Axel unless they were a couple. Something that might make him look at relationships in a better light. Axel followed behind him, checking out the knickknacks by the registers while Roxas was paying, and didn’t press him for an answer the entire way back to the car. As he lit up a cigarette before throwing the car into gear, something popped into Roxas’s head. Was this a good plan? 

“If I make it all the way through your date and you run out of things to throw at me before I give in, then tomorrow night, you come to my place, cook me a nice dinner, and we have a couple’s night together. The kind of night you have when you’ve been dating for a long time and you just pick to stay in and be together rather than go out and have fun.” Axel gave him a strange look, as if something that Roxas had said had struck a cord, and Roxas added quickly, “Obviously I’m not including how we’d end a night like that if we were a couple...it’s just pretend, you’re not getting the whole deal unless it’s for real, sorry to disappoint.” Axel blinked away the odd, longing stare then to bark out a quick laugh. 

“No, it’s not that, Roxy. But fair enough! It’s almost a shame you’re not gonna win, because I can be a pretty awesome cook when I put my mind to it.” He said this smugly, not taking his eyes off the road but still exuding the confidence of someone who had no doubt about being correct. Roxas snorted. 

“Axe, I don’t think I’ve seen you turn on a stove the entire time I’ve known you,” he scoffed, raising an eyebrow. Axel shrugged. 

“Win and find out, Blondie. I’m gonna need you to dress nicely, though, okay?” He pulled into the driveway, and then turned to face Roxas before getting out of the car. “You’re going to have the best worst date ever, you know. It’s definitely at least going to be one to remember.” Roxas beamed at that, despite the joking tone the redhead had used. 

“Now THAT’S true, at least,” agreed the blonde as he opened his door. Axel quickly overtook him and lex them into the living room, where Demyx was practically bouncing with excitement. 

“Quit your job, Rox,” he said gleefully, handing the bong to Roxas. “I honestly feel like you and I need to negotiate a fair cut between us, because we’re looking at some serious cash.” 

Roxas stared at him, wide eyed, as he took the offered hit, while Axel shrewdly asked, “How much cash you talking, Dem?” Demyx clapped his roommate’s shoulder conspiratorially. 

“I knew how this was gonna go over with the people I know, especially with what’s going on right now. I texted a handful of people the video and said the creator was asking eight hundred munny per card, and if they or anyone they knew would be interested. I did that after you left, guys. It hasn’t even been a half an hour and I’ve already got a waiting list. I sure hope you can crank those out, man,” he laughed to Roxas, “The only limitation to what we could be doing will be how many of those little gems you can make, Rox. Make me all of those,” he gestured towards the bag in Roxas’ hand, “and I can have piles of munny waiting for you in the morning. I’ve got someone way out in Hundred Acre Wood asking me to ship one for an extra cost...I think we’re about to be legends.” Roxas was frozen. The turnaround from what he had thought this gift would be and what it was rapidly turning into was so drastic that his brain refused to process the words. Even Axel looked stricken, but came to himself much more quickly. 

“Holy shit Roxy,” he whispered hoarsely, then swallowed. “I think we’re gonna have to talk to, like, a lawyer or something.” Roxas was still in shock. This was just a gift to keep a friend safe. He hadn’t really expect to launch a massive, law-defying, police fighting program. Something that could have every chance of sending him to prison for a very, very long time. Or...could make him unbelievably wealthy. Demyx was selling that little program for eight hundred munny. Even if he only made thirty like Demyx had initially asked for, that would be twenty-four thousand munny. If he made more... 

“Come sit down before you drop my bong. Let’s talk,” Demyx suggested, and Roxas obeyed automatically. They sat, Axel acting as an intermediary, for quite some time before they nailed down a fair deal, smoking and laughing while Roxas made copy after copy of his program. When Roxas’ stomach growled audibly some time later, they agreed to call it quits for the day and split up to get lunch, after which Axel would drop Roxas off at home. 

“I need time to get ready!” Axel had whined when Roxas suggested he come back to finish making the rest of the clone disks. So it was that Roxas found himself opening the door to his apartment with plans to be picked back up at seven forty. When he entered, he found himself face to face with a tiny, furious redhead. He gulped. 

“ROXAS,” she gasped angrily; she had clearly heard his keys in the door and had come to stand by it , hands on hips, while Sora shrunk down on the couch like he was trying to be invisible. “Even AXEL has texted me back, and he’s the worst. Are you mad at me?” Completely thrown off, Roxas stammered. 

“Kairi! What? No! I...my phone is dead?” He dug the device out of his pocket and held it up as proof. Kairi glared at him. 

“You couldn’t charge it?” she said accusingly, and Roxas laughed nervously. 

“A LOT has been going on. Can you guys come chill in my room while I fill you in? I’ve gotta find something nice to wear,” he asked, beginning to edge around Kairi in an attempt to make it to his room. She sighed dramatically, following him and grabbing Sora’s hand to pull him along as well. Once in his room, Roxas immediately plugged his phone in, grabbed Axel’s sketchbook from where it still lay on the bed, and moved it to the desk along with his backpack so the couple would have enough room to sit. Kairi did so with a huff, crossing her arms in a pout. “So do you want the long version, or the cliff notes?” he asked, heading for the closet. He didn’t really have that many ‘nice’ clothing options. 

“Cliff notes,” Sora called. “She can ask you about all the things she wants rather than you trying to figure out what all she doesn’t know.” Kairi nodded in agreement, so Roxas obliged. 

“Well, I stayed with your brother last night, I’m sure you heard about that at least. I finished that thing I was working on for Demyx, and it’s turning into a lot more than I expected. I’m about to get a ton of munny. And...I have a date tonight,” he finished gleefully, turning back to them to see their reactions. Both Sora and Kairi were staring at him open mouthed, but when he turned, they both began speaking at once. 

“What was that about a ton of munny?” 

“The one you and Axel were postponing, right?” 

“What did your thing do again?” 

“Just to clarify, by ‘stayed with,’ you just mean crashed on their couch like usual, right?” 

“Where is-“ Kairi finally held up her hand, stopping Sora mid-question, and stared at Roxas hard. 

“What the hell happened in the last, like, twenty-four hours? You and Axel were just chilling over here LAST NIGHT. We didn’t even hear y’all leave.” She paused thoughtfully, then added, “please start with your date, though, because the way you were staring at your closet makes me think you need help.” Roxas looked at her gratefully. 

“Kai, as always, you are the best. Ever. Of all time. Yes, it’s the date with your brother I somewhat inevitability postponed, he asked me about it last night. But now it’s a bet, too. Uh, let’s summarize that all with; he’s gonna take me on some over the top ridiculous date to try to get me to admit setting is as important as the person you’re on the date with. I am absolutely going to go through with it, no matter what he throws at me, because if I can, he’s coming over tomorrow to have a couples night with me. Like we’ve been dating for forever. Yes, shut up, ok,” he sighed as Kairi let out a little squeal and batted her eyelashes while calling him a ‘cutie-pie.’ “I don’t know, I was trying to think of something that would put being a couple in a good light for him.” Sora wrapped an arm around Kairi and pulled her into a tight embrace in his lap. 

“No dude, it’s totally cute. I’m gonna get some stuff together for you if it’s gonna go down. We have the BEST couples nights,” he said genuinely, planting a kiss onto the top of a grinning Kairi’s head as he finished. 

“Thanks, man, that would actually be super, super helpful...I’m kinda rusty at this point,” he said, rubbing the back of his head, then looked back down to Kairi. “But ultimately, all I know is it’s gonna be something designed to make it an ‘awful’ date and that he wants me to ‘dress nice’ and...what?” Roxas demanded of the pair, who had exchanged a loaded look at his words. 

“There’s absolutely no way he could have gotten them a table there,” Sora said in answer to something in the redhead’s gaze, and she shook her head. 

“I wouldn’t put it past him. He knows a lot of people,” she answered thoughtfully. She finally turned back to Roxas, asking, “Did he tell you ANYTHING else?” 

“Not really. As per the wording of our conversation, he’s trying to get me to ask him to end the date. Other than that, he clearly wants it to be a surprise, so I don’t know-“ Kairi interrupted him. 

“I think the surprise is his play here, so I’m gonna soften it without ruining your date. There’s this really famous dinner theatre place downtown. Singing, dancing, the works. It’s...well, it’s popular, and...I guess very rom com. I’m not gonna day more, but I think that’s where he’s taking you. And you do need to have nice attire...it’s like a less formal opera.” She scooted out of Sora’s lap, heading to his closet. “I don’t want to send you in a jacket, especially since I bet Axel will wear one, I know his go-to dress-up clothes. You...Roxas, you own two suit shirts. One is white. One is black. For the love of Gaia, please tell me your fancy attire options extend beyond ‘wedding’ or ‘funeral’.” She scowled at him sternly, then sighed, looking him over critically. “You and Sora are really similar in height and build, I bet I can dig something out of OUR closet. Are your light grey pants clean? The ones that are kinda skinny,” she asked, breezing out of his room and heading presumably to theirs without waiting for an answer. Sora chuckled as Roxas began to hunt around his room for the requested pants. 

“Go in knowing it’s a joke and have fun, it’ll be a blast,” he said with a wink. “But what I wanna hear about is the large-sums-of-munny part. What’s going on with that?” 

“Answer loudly!” Kairi called from within their room, and both of them laughed. 

“Gave Demyx the app. He asked if he could sell it to some people...turns out they’re going crazy for it.” He located the pants in a basket of clean laundry he had yet to sort and tossed them onto the bed next to his roommate, then continued to search in the bin for socks. “I guess the video of my app erasing Axel’s criminal record off the police database is helping.” 

“WHAT?” Kairi shrieked, running back into the room. Sora looked equally as flabbergasted, and Roxas smirked. 

“Just as a refresher to those of you who weren’t paying diligent attention to me before, my app takes the phone’s number and then splits itself into different tasks. Some block that number from being searched for by any major search engine, large data source, or, most importantly, the police. It just shows the number as incorrectly searched, like the number was typed in wrong. Another part launches a search of the phone’s history, then searches for every number it has made contact with and garbles the number in the log. It also blocks future communication from being logged, so as long as I just changed the log file, it didn’t matter what had been said. Anyways, one of the things is to target the police database, find anything that would be stored to or linked to that number and to delete the entire thing. Any data even remotely related to those numbers. Until it just looks like you typed the wrong thing again. Here, watch.” He grabbed his laptop from within his backpack, powered it up, and set it on the bed. While it loaded up, he strolled over to his phone, which had charged enough to power on and was showing a lot of missed alerts onscreen. As he passed by the bed, he clicked on the video to start it up, and then he unlocked his phone. There were numerous frantic texts and calls from both Kairi and Demyx, and even a few from Sora, but one in particular had caught his eye. 

Thursday 11:54 P.M. 

Stupid Ven: hey man, getting ready to start my trip 

Stupid Ven: still on to take me in? 

Stupid Ven: hope so, I just booked my flight, I’ll be there Sunday 

Roxas hurriedly grabbed his phone to reply to his brother, remaining tethered to the desk by the cord. 

Friday 4:57 P.M. 

You: of course, you idiot 

You: Sunday! I’m so stoked 

You: get ready for me to spend the first like full day filling you in on all the craziness that is my life now 

“Holy Gaia,” he heard Sora mutter as the video on the laptop finished, and the pair turned towards him again. Roxas held up his phone and waved it back and forth. 

“Add one more to the list; Ven’s gonna be here onSunday,” he said excitedly, and the couple on his bed grinned in tandem. 

“We’re finally gonna get to meet your brother,” Kairi mused with a laugh. “I can’t wait. We’re gonna be in-laws one day.” 

“Oh shut up,” Roxas growled playfully. 

“On another note,” Sora interjected, returning their focus to the laptop. “This thing is amazing. No wonder people are freaking out. You made sure you’re not gonna get found out, right?” 

“Of course,” Roxas sniffed, going over to scoop his laptop back up and depositing it on the desk. “It’s secure, the disks are single-use, and it’s boobytrapped so that if someone tries to go into the code, three different virus programs will be let loose. No one’s getting anything from that.” He turned back to Kairi pleadingly. “Now please can you find me something to wear? I need to shower and get ready and I really don’t wanna go looking like I just left a funeral, so-“ 

“Alright! I’m going!” Kairi laughed as she bounced off the bed and back to their room. “I have something in mind, anyway.” As Roxas began pacing around his room, Sora laughed. 

“Go take your shower, she’ll be done by the time you are. Relax. It’s just Axel, right? Y’all are always doing stuff together.” 

“Yeah, But it’s never been a DATE. It’s like, his first actual date, too. And basically my whole long-game here has been to get him to want to date me, right? I’m just hella nervous about this whole thing.” Sora patted his shoulder sympathetically, but gave him a soft smile. 

“You are so...good, Rox. I’m gonna go see what Kai is up to,” he said gently before leaving to find his girlfriend. 

Roxas hopped in the shower, taking his time as he tried to wrap his head around everything that had happened in just a matter of hours. Most importantly, what he was going to do with Ven. His classes wouldn’t be out for another two weeks, and he could only accumulate so many absences...he guessed he could leave his brother with his roommates, or drag him to class... Roxas cranked off the water with a sigh and got out, toweling off and quickly donning the grey pants Kairi had requested. Then he wrapped the towel around the back of his neck and stepped into his bedroom, still drying his hair. The pair were waiting for him; Sora with his normal, easy smile and Kairi with a pondering look as she took him in, seeming like she was trying to take his measurements in her head. 

“I think the fit is gonna be perfect, actually. You guys have a weirdly similar build.” She handed Roxas a hanger, then pulled Sora to his feet. “Come show us when you’re done, I’ll see if I need to make any changes.” And they left again, closing the door behind them as they went. Roxas grimaced initially when he got a good look at the gold suit shirt, which was soft and was crisscrossed in a darker gold, linear pattern with the slightest hint of sparkle to it. It seemed pretty gaudy...but he supposed the grey pants, combined with the grey vest and darker grey tie Kairi had laid out on his bed, would tone it down significantly. He got dressed, struggling with the tie before giving up and making his way out to the living room in search of Sora. 

“Bro, are you any good tying ties? Mine keep coming out uneven...” he trailed off sheepishly, holding out the tie, and Sora laughed. 

“Come here,” he sighed dramatically, taking the tie from the blonde and wrapping it around his own neck. “Kairi was right; it fits you perfectly. You look good, man.” Kairi looked up from their show finally as Roxas was slipping the now evenly tied knot over his own head. Appraising him from head to toe, she nodded approvingly. 

“Yep. Your eyes are absolutely stunning. Go get him, tiger.” They both turned back to the TV as Roxas headed back to his room to apply cologne and fuss with his hair. At seven thirty on the dot Roxas found himself leaned over the back of the couch, watching TV with Sora and Kairi as he waited the last few minutes for Axel’s arrival. Right before it was time, there was a light knock on the door, and Roxas was pulling it open before the sound ended. Axel looked glorious; Roxas had never seen him in formal attire before, and he was immediately a fan. He had a fitted white suit shirt on, one button too many undone at the chest which let some of his tattoo work peek through, and open over that he had a deep blue blazer with gold trim which made his fiery mane of hair look brighter than usual. He was holding a single, yellow rose, which he offered to Roxas while looking him over with a huge, thoughtful smile on his face. 

“Hey Roxy, you’re looking nice. Ready to go?” he asked, gesturing behind him. Roxas gave a quick wave to the pair on the couch then quickly shut the door behind him as he stepped out into the cooling evening air. Instead of loping ahead to the car as he usually did, Axel waited for Roxas to take the lead and placed his hand lightly on the small of Roxas’ back as he fell in step beside him. “You really do look absolutely fantastic,” he purred, but sounded genuine. Then he opened the car door for him before heading around to his own side and getting in. 

“You’re not bad yourself, Red. I didn’t even know you had nice clothes,” he teased, conveniently forgetting his own earlier predicament. Axel threw him a wink before starting up the car and beginning to drive. 

“I bet there’s still a lot about me that would surprise you,” he said jokingly. Roxas could believe it; he felt like he was constantly finding out new things about the redhead beside him. 

“Tell me something, then,” commanded Roxas quickly, “where would be the first place you would go if you could travel anywhere?” 

“Traverse Town,” Axel answered simply, and Roxas laughed out loud at his words. “No, seriously. I’d like to see where you came from, the places you knew and loved, see the room you lived in. That would probably be much more interesting than anything else I could think of.” He said it with conviction, like he’d thought of this before, and Roxas couldn’t help but stare at the man. Most of the time, he was cocky, smug, teasing...when moments like this slipped out, he always found himself taken off-guard by Axel’s sincerity. “Since we’re asking questions, though...what is your favorite movie?” 

“Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. It’s beautiful...and I’m a romantic,” he laughed, running a hand through his hair. “Favorite superhero?” The two traded questions back and forth, until Axel pulled them off the main road they had been traveling down and onto what looked like either a small street or a huge driveway. The building they were approaching looked from the front like a huge, ornately constructed castle, complete with sweeping steps rising to huge oaken doors which were opened fully to allow entrance. Axel drove them around the driveway to a section for parking, where he found a spot and killed the engine. 

“Remember, all you have to do is admit the setting for the date is just as important, ask me to end it, and we’ll go somewhere else,” he said playfully as he exited the car and was at Roxas’ door, pulling it open before he had a chance to do it himself. He laughed as he got out. 

“Either you’ve forgotten how stubborn I am, or you don’t understand what I’m willing to endure. There’s not a thing you could throw at me that’ll make me give in. Besides, company’s all that matters.” Axel laughed and smoothly slipped his hand into Roxas’, intertwining their fingers before the blonde had fully understood what was happening; his heart was pounding and fluttering all at once as they walked the rest of the way to the grand entrance of the castle. 

Maybe it was his secret love of musical theatre, or that he knew what he was going into, or maybe it was simply because his date was charming and funny and he’d been wanting to go out with him for so long, but Roxas had been having a blast. Once they’d been led to their table by a stuffy maitre d’ who somehow reminded Roxas of an old antique clock, they were immediately surrounded by singing and dancing wait staff. While a catchy song about how happy they were to have the patrons as guests began, a man dressed in brass and gold colors appeared and began to offer them small samples of some of the more popular dishes as the song progressed. Roxas found himself laughing as he tried to snag some of the appetizers for himself and Axel before they danced out of reach. Then, once the man had returned and taken their order, the heart of the show began; it was a love story, and that took Roxas by surprise, but he figured it was another element of Axel’s attempt to get him to back out. They whispered together, laughing at some parts and commenting at others, throughout the whole show. The story got really gushy towards the end of their meal, and by the time dessert had been served, the couple was waltzing around between the tables in their happily ever after moment. He had assumed the show was over, but Axel leaned over and whispered that they were about to be taken for another part of the show before they were ushered by more singing into another large area of the building. It was a huge ballroom lined with a choir, and an instructor stood in the middle of the room as all the diners trickled in and waited for him to begin; that was how Roxas found himself ballroom dancing with Axel to the delicate, beautiful sound of a choir softly singing to them. 

‘Just a little change 

Small to say the least 

Both a little scared’ 

Held in Axel’s arms, revolving slowly together on a crowded dance floor but feeling alone together, the words caused a prickling sensation behind his eyes, and he laughed before he started crying like an idiot. 

“Okay, I don’t know if this went how you planned it, but honestly this is probably one of the best dates I’ve ever been on, if not THE best,” he sighed up at the redhead once he had gotten himself under control, but Axel’s knowing smile made him gasp faintly. “You...what? I thought you wanted...what about your bet?” Roxas floundered as he realized the man hadn’t been planning on winning. Axel smiled softly, all of his usual humor absent in the wake of his sincerity, and bowed his head to whisper in Roxas’ ear. 

“Having you go in with the lowest expectations meant it would be easier for me to impress you...and it was a gamble. You might have been totally bored or off put by my date, in which case, I could just say I was trying to get you to hate it.” Roxas couldn’t think of anything to say after hearing the always-confident Axel admit he hadn’t been sure of himself; it was so out of character, Roxas was almost waiting for a punchline. Instead, Axel purred, “I guess company really is the important part,” before straightening up again. Roxas ducked to hide his blushing face, but after a second, his curiosity got the best of him. 

“So what’s the plan after this?” he asked, unsure if there WAS anything after their visit to the castle. Axel laughed softly. 

“Well, I figured you’d have gone one way or the other by this point, but the plan is ultimately the same; we’re going somewhere with a different ambience. It’s a surprise,” he added before Roxas could ask, and the blonde nodded in acceptance. 

“Anywhere’s fine, I just didn’t really want the evening to end yet.” As the choir surrounding them faded away and left just one woman ending in a solo, the dancers around them swirled to a stop and began clapping. As their own momentum slowed, Roxas felt a gentle tug before he was wrapped up in Axel’s embrace, the smell of cologne and cigarettes and the redhead invading his senses briefly before the man stepped back again with a smile so pure it made Roxas’ heart skip. 

“Come on, Roxy. Let’s get out of here.” 

They ended up driving for about fifteen minutes, conversation flowing smoothly over the sounds of the night whipping past their open windows. When the air had just started to take on a salty edge and Roxas wondered if they were going to the coast, Axel turned them off the main road and down a dirt path. 

“Is this where you kill me?” he asked Axel jokingly, and the redhead smiled at his crack. 

“Just be patient, Blondie. We’re almost there,” he said with a wink, lowering the volume on the car’s radio. “This has always been my favorite spot. You don’t mind a little trespassing, do you?” Roxas laughed, but honestly wasn’t sure if Axel was serious or not, especially when he didn’t join in with Roxas’ laughter. He pulled the car over near a small pathway leading through a thick grove of trees, and then killed the engine. Roxas was pushed his door open and stepped out into the cool night air, enjoying the slight breeze for a moment before it sent a shiver through him. Axel was leaning in the back door of the driver’s side, pulling several things out with him when he stood again and kicked the door shut. The only thing Roxas could clearly identify was a large blanket, and he only recognized the shapeless mass as that because he’d used it once at their house. “Alright, now we walk,” Axel said cheerfully as he set off along the path. Roxas hurried to keep up, curiosity consuming him once again. 

“You’re really not gonna give me ANY hint as to why you’re leading me into a dark forest late at night w-“ 

“Shh,” Axel shushed him gently, silencing him. “You’re so impatient, Roxy. No, I’m not; it’s like the tattoo. You’re just gonna have to see it for yourself.” Roxas pouted, and Axel laughed, “We’re almost there, look.” Just starting to become visible through the trees was a tall, crumbling structure rising up into the night. Roxas quickened his pace, eager to finally see their destination, and Axel allowed him to take the lead as he maintained his ambling pace. Roxas reached a small clearing to see...what was it? Just some old, extremely tall building? There was nothing on the external of the building to indicate what purpose it served, and they had approached from the rear of the building so all he could see was a flat wall. With its height, he assumed it had been an old lighthouse or something, but they weren’t close enough to the coast for that...were they? He turned, eyes full of questions, to look at Axel as he stepped into the open space as well. The redhead simply kept walking, angling towards one side and beginning to round the corner. Roxas followed in time to see him drop the bundle he was carrying in through a broken window and slip easily in behind it. “Keep going around, I’ll meet you at the front door,” he called to the smaller blonde, who obeyed and turned the next corner of the building to find a wooden doorway centered in the aging facade of the building. Axel was waiting for him, leaning against the doorframe casually. 

“Is...okay, Axel? I trust you and all, but should I be worried that you’ve driven me to the middle of nowhere, then had me get out of the car and walk into a secluded forest, to lead me to some huge, abandoned shack? This is starting to seem like the beginning of a murder mystery,” he laughed, but it sounded a little nervous even to his own ears. Axel rolled his eyes with a sigh. 

“We’re not really there yet...we’re going up.” He gestured over his shoulder with his thumb, indicating a rickety staircase that led up and out of sight. “I’ll go first, so you can run away if you need to,” he added mischievously, leading the way to the stairs. “It’s gonna be a long climb, don’t let that scare you.” Roxas grumbled but followed the man up the stairs for what seemed like an absurdly long time; how tall WAS this building? The higher up they went, huge pieces of machinery began to appear; before they’d reached their stop, giant gears surrounded them, unmoving but looking like they could at any point. At long last, they reached a tiny landing, and Axel pushed open a door that was so small Roxas hadn’t even noticed it until it was moving. The taller man ducked through, calling, “give me one second!” to Roxas before he could be followed. The blonde took the opportunity to look around himself; the plate-sized windows spaced infrequently along their ascent now dimly illuminated huge pistons, gears, and ropes above them and a fragment of the stairs they had climbed before they were swallowed by darkness. He gulped. Even without being able to see the ground below, he knew if he fell, it would spell instantaneous death. Axel poked his head back through the doorway. “I’m ready, come on out. Hold on to my hand til you’re ready,” he said cautiously, extending a hand, and Roxas took it, allowing himself to be pulled out after the redhead. He stepped out onto a ledge that was about five feet wide and had no exterior wall or railing keeping them from a deadly plummet to the earth below. He clutched Axel’s hand tighter as a strong gust of wind buffeted them, and stepped closer to the man, leaning into his warmth and grounding presence. Body firmly pressed against Axel, he got his first real look at where they were; more specifically, his first real look at their view. 

“Gaia,” he breathed quietly as he took in the incredible sight. Far below them, Destiny Island unfolded before them like a map, studded with brilliant points of light like fallen stars. Spreading endlessly bright and clear above them, countless real stars shined. Everything was quiet, peaceful, and breathtakingly beautiful. After a minute, Axel pulled him gently over to a pile of blankets he’d made up against the wall and then sat down, tugging the blonde down as well and into the curve of his legs with his back against the man’s chest. He reached into a bag next to them and pulled out a flask, a thermos, and two red solo cups. Then he worked around the smaller man in his lap as he poured a good amount from the flask into each cup and topped it with the liquid from the thermos, which smelled chocolatey. 

“Whiskey and hot chocolate,” Axel said as he handed one of the cups to Roxas before taking a sip of his own. Then he threw one of the blankets over them, leaving just heads and arms out of the warmth. “This was an old clock tower a long, long time ago. Kairi and I found it by accident when we were kids, and I’ve been coming back here every once in a while since then. This is one of my favorite places in the world.” Roxas snuggled against the man, sipping on his drink thoughtfully and watching the city below them. They stayed like that for a while, cuddled together and drinking warm drinks while they watched the world turn. Once they’d finished with their cups, Roxas angled himself slightly so he could look up at Axel. 

“Hands down, best date I’ve ever been on,” he said playfully, drawing a soft smile from the redhead. 

“I enjoyed this far more than I expected to,” Axel allowed quietly, hugging Roxas tightly for a second before releasing the blonde from his hold. “Can I show you one more thing before we call it quits? Be CAREFUL,” Axel added when Roxas had nodded. Then he scooted himself forward until he was at the very edge of the ledge, feet dangling over to hang in open air. Roxas swallowed hard but followed suit, slowly lowering his legs down individually before he looked out at his encompassing view; it was like he was suspended high in the sky looking out at everything around them. It was perception-changing, serene and intimidating, peaceful and terrifying. He looked over at Axel, closely following his profile backlit by stars and a gorgeously bright moon. His hair was a deep burgundy, skin porcelain as the moonlight did it’s best to sap the colors from the world, and Roxas found himself more enraptured with his view of the man beside him than the one given by their gravity defying position. Axel was staring out into space, a small smile on his face as he leaned forward slightly with his elbows resting on his legs. He spoke softly, words just barely carrying to Roxas’ ears, “I’ve never brought anyone to this place, either, you know. You’re taking a lot of firsts from me.” 

“Is that a bad thing?” Roxas asked, keeping his own voice low as well. He still hadn’t taken his eyes off Axel, so he watched the expressions flickering across his face; humor, fear, frustration, sadness, chagrin, before settling on one that looked hopeful to Roxas. 

“I think it’s a good thing, Roxy. It also means that no matter what happens, you’re in my life forever. In thirty years, when I think of the first real date I went on, I’ll remember this night. Even if you’re not still around, I’ll be thinking of you. That’s...well, there’s no turning back now, you know?” Roxas mulled that over, glowing with the thought that Axel would always remember memories with him in them. It was also a little unnerving to hear Axel say there was no turning back...had he been considering that? Rather than taint his own glowing memory with doubts, he scooted himself to Axel’s side and under his arm, making the redhead wrap the limb around his shoulder as he leaned into the man’s side. Axel tilted his head, resting it gently on Roxas’, and there they stayed for another infinite stretch of time. An alarm eventually began to beep insistently from Axel’s phone, and he chuckled, placing a light kiss on the place on Roxas’s head where his had just been resting before pulling away and back from the edge before standing. “Let’s head back, Rox.” 

“Do we have to?” Roxas groaned, but got to his feet anyway. Axel nodded seriously. 

“Yep. Promised myself I’d have you home at a decent hour. That way I can still fit in ‘flirting with you while in my bed’ and maybe leave YOU wanting more for once.” He winked broadly while packing everything he could back into the little bag and bundling it into the blankets. Roxas gave an exaggerated sigh. 

“I ALWAYS want more, isn’t that the problem?” he said, honesty not completely masked by his humor. Then, as they ducked inside and began their descent down the stairs, he threw out; “Ven’s gonna be visiting me on Sunday. For a little while.” Axel threw a surprised look back over his shoulder. 

“Really? Do I get to meet him?” he asked curiously, and Roxas rolled his eyes with a snort of laughter. 

“Of course. You two are probably the most important people in my life,” he shrugged as if the information was inconsequential, while internally wondering if he had admitted too much. Axel turned back to look at the stairs in front of himself quickly, but not before Roxas had seen a fleeting look of both panic and awe in his eyes. Keeping his gaze ahead of him, Axel spoke again. 

“Does he party? Dem and I were planning something, but if he wouldn’t be up for it-“ Roxas interjected before the redhead could finish; this was exactly the sort of thing he needed to entice Ven to stay. 

“No, that’d be awesome! I’m supposed to be giving him reasons to choose this school over all the ones he’s visiting.” Then, intrigued, he asked, “What are you guys planning?” Roxas could practically HEAR the smirk in his voice as Axel answered. 

“It WAS going to be a surprise for you, a congratulations to you and Demyx on your business venture together. He has news for you, by the way. And we haven’t had a good rager in forever.” Back in high school, he and Ven had attended the occasional crazy party together; he knew Ven thrived in that kind of environment and it was unlikely his personality had shifted so drastically since the last time they had seen each other. 

“Yep, that’ll be right up his alley. That’ll be perfect, actually.” Roxas was getting excited about the idea now that he was thinking of it. That would be a good start to his brother’s visit. 

“I think I like your brother already,” Axel teased as they made it to the base of the stairs. “What do you think he’s gonna think about me?” Roxas actually gave this some thought; he hadn’t caught Ventus up yet, so he still knew nothing about the redhead at all. 

“I honestly don’t know...he doesn’t know anything about you yet. We haven’t really caught up in a while.” As they stepped out of the clock tower and into the clearing of trees, Roxas could have sworn he saw a hurt look flicker across Axel’s face before the more composed look he gave, one eyebrow raised questioningly. 

“Does he at least know you’re...interested in guys?” he asked carelessly as he strolled down the path leading back to the car. 

“Of course he does,” Roxas huffed. “It hasn’t been THAT long since we’ve talked. I hit him up right after we started talking, but we didn’t talk then because he was planning the trip down here.” Axel nodded, seeming appeased. 

“Okay, fair enough, Blondie.” Silence fell between them, and their crunching footsteps became deafening as both men were consumed in thought. When the trees ahead began to thin and flashes of Axel’s vehicle began to be visible, Roxas found himself being the one to speak first again. 

“So there is one thing,” he began as they broke free of the trees and approached the car. 

“What’s that?” asked the taller man as he unlocked the car and opened the back door. 

“I have a confession I need- oh, hey, would you put that behind my seat? - I need to make about the bet you threw,” he said, smoothly throwing in his request while he spoke as Axel had begun to put his bundle down on the back seat. He kept talking, leaving Axel no chance to question him, so the man leaned further into the car to do as he was asked. “I had no intention of losing, but I was- could you throw that sweater there too? Thanks - but I was already gonna give you part of what you asked for anyways.” As he spoke, he had edged closer and closer to the frame of the car until when he stopped, he was standing between Axel’s knees. When he had asked the redhead to move the second thing, Axel had sat down on the edge of the backseat, leaving his legs from the knee down outside the car as he stretched out across the back. That meant that when he straightened back up again, he was facing the blonde’s midsection briefly before Roxas pushed at his shoulders and he allowed himself to fall back onto the seat below him. Roxas was climbing in on top of him before he had even laid back completely, and was straddling his lap when he finished with, “I was always gonna be lenient about the first-date-kiss. I’m not gonna miss my chance to show off some of the perks of dating me.” There was only enough time for Axel’s eyes to widen in surprise before Roxas was kissing him with an urgency he hadn’t ever had before. His movements were fluctuating, constantly shifting from an endearingly sweet kiss to a sharp nip of teeth or a jerk of his hips, leaving even the more experienced Axel struggling to keep up and intentionally thwarting his efforts to take control. The blonde was teasing him, goading him, trying to get under his skin; he wanted to be the dominant one if only for a little. He didn’t realize he was playing with fire until Axel snapped. Roxas had just pulled back from their kiss again to lick and nibble his way down Axel’s jaw to his neck when the redhead brought his hand up, reaching for him; in a swift movement, he caught the man’s wrist and pushed it back onto the seat above his head, pinning it there, and- 

Axel made a strangled sound before a growl rumbled from deep within his chest and Roxas was in motion, back hitting the seat before his brain registered the fact that the redhead had just switched their positions. Axel was forceful, demanding, as he took possession of Roxas’ mouth and began shrugging out of his blazer without breaking the fiery kiss. When he drew back, breathing harshly, Roxas let out a tiny whimper and grabbed Axel’s hips above him loosely. “Lose the shirt,” Axel barked, throwing his coat into the front seat and quickly beginning the work of undoing the tiny buttons on his own. Roxas tried to ignore the command and reached up to help Axel with his task, but upon seeing his direction, the redhead snarled and yanked the remaining connected parts of his shirt apart, sending the last few buttons flying. “YOUR shirt,” he clarified roughly, tugging off his ruined shirt and launching it after the blazer. Roxas fumbled as he hurried to do as he was told, butterflies nervously erupting within the pit of his stomach at the man’s tone. His eyes quickly took in the shape of Axel’s tattoo work, but not much more than that could be determined in the dark, and he didn’t have time to think about that for long because the glint in the taller man’s emerald eyes told him Sora’s shirt was in danger of suffering the same fate as Axel’s. Before he’d even managed to get the last buttons undone, Axel’s warm hands were on him, tracing their way up his stomach and across his ribs; one hand split away to dance over the flat muscles of his chest as the other drew a quick line down from the center of his rib cage and paused when it hit his pants. Then, he began following the line where his waistband met the skin over his hips back and forth with a single finger. Roxas gasped faintly as Axel’s thumb ghosted over his nipple, and then he gave a much less intimidating growl of his own and tried to reach for the redhead, but Axel wasn’t having that. He swiftly pinned both of Roxas’ thin wrists with one large hand and grabbed a handful of his hair with the other, roughly tilting his head back slightly to expose his neck and the junction of his shoulder. Then he bit Roxas right where the two met and Roxas cried out in a mixture of pain and growing pleasure as Axel’s tongue gently traced the marks his teeth had left before beginning to work on what was sure to be a massive hickey. Roxas was barely aware of the moans and pleas that were escaping him, and there was no room in his head for self consciousness with Axel’s mouth moving from there to lead a trail of kisses lower and lower until his tongue quickly dipped into Roxas’ navel, making him jerk his hips forward and unintentionally grind up against the man. Axel’s free hand had followed his mouth and now his slender fingertips were fiddling with the button on Roxas’ pants and the blonde realized he had let things get way out of hand. 

“Axel,” he moaned weakly, but when his button came undone, he gained conviction, “Wait, Axe, I...please, I wasn’t-“ Axel sprung away from him and fully out of the vehicle before Roxas could blink. By the time the blonde had sat upright, he saw the redhead pacing with long strides towards the tree line, stopping at the edge and then standing locked in place, twitching shoulders the only thing giving away his struggle for composure and control. Roxas’ heart was pounding, his body screaming at him to get back to what he had been doing, and he felt awful. He initiated, instigated, encouraged...it was his fault that they had gotten where they had. After a long moment, Axel swung around and returned to the car at a much more measured pace. 

“You are going to drive me INSANE, Roxy,” he said jokingly, a tightness in his eyes the only thing giving him away as anything other than playful, before he pulled open the drivers side door and got in, reaching to find his shirt. Roxas’ nervousness bubbled out in a tiny, frantic giggle. 

“I, uh...I’m sorry about your shirt, Axe. I’m sor-“ but Axel threw him a look that made him trail off. 

“Don’t apologize. You have nothing to be sorry for. I was moving too fast, I just lost control for a second,” he said guiltily, and that sent a pang of frustration through him. 

“Axel,” he grumbled, but the man acted like he hadn’t heard. 

“You want shotgun for the drive back? If not, there are plenty of blankets back there,” he said teasingly, and Roxas sighed before getting out of the car as well and circling around to the passenger side. 

“Axel.” This time Roxas said his name flatly, demanding attention, and Axel let out a sigh of his own. 

“Go ahead,” he said defeatedly as he lit a cigarette and then started the car, retracing the dirt path to the main road. Roxas nodded to himself. 

“I don’t want this to be a big thing that ruins our night, so just hear me out. I’m sorry, I clearly want you, and I let things go on too long before I stopped it. I shouldn’t have teased you, that wasn’t fair, I just...wanted to make you want me, too.” He ended sheepishly, quietly, ashamed by his own neediness; Axel groaned and then laughed weakly. “You wanted to...oh Gaia, Rox, that’s one 

thing you don’t have to worry about.” Still chuckling, he pulled them back out onto the main road, and as streetlights illuminated the car, Roxas found his eyes locked on the large part of Axel’s chest tattoo that was visible under the open shirt he wore. The focus of the piece was a huge, intricate Roman numeral for eight, sitting in a circle of pillars that were all ablaze. The flames flared outward, consuming several other images that were more hidden by the sides of the shirt, but dead center above the numeral and burning pillars was a lonely crown, almost identical to the one he sported on his shoulder. Without thinking, he reached forward to brush his fingers faintly over the familiar shape, and Axel shuddered under his touch. “Mmm,” he hummed contentedly as Roxas allowed his fingertips to ghost over the large numeral on his chest next. The work was wonderful, intricate, fascinating; Roxas felt like he could easily lose himself memorizing every line and detail. Axel had apparently still been thinking over what they had previously said, because when he spoke it was as if there had been no break in the conversation. “Roxas, I want you more than anything or anyone, far more than I even know what to do with. The only reason I haven’t followed through is for YOUR sake, which is another new thing for me. Don’t think that means I don’t crave you with every fiber of my being...if I had my way, I’d have thrown you into bed hours after we’d met. Honestly, you’d probably still be handcuffed to my headboard. So unless you’re caving on your restriction,” he paused, raising an eyebrow at the blonde, but Roxas just rolled his eyes, so he pressed on, “Then don’t forget that the only thing keeping me from jumping you is YOU. And don’t apologize for giving me a taste of what I’m starving for.” A laugh bubbled out of Roxas before he could stop himself; what the redhead had said was uncharacteristically sweet and hearing that Axel still yearned for him boosted his ego and eased his guilt greatly. Mood already drastically improving, he decided to push his luck. 

“So does that mean you’re still gonna text me from bed?” he asked innocently, tilting his head to the side and watching Axel’s profile as surprise and then laughter and then a wolffish smile flickered across it. Grin still in place, he turned the car onto more familiar streets. 

“Unless you’re gonna be in it with me,” he purred, and Roxas laughed. 

“Come on, Red. Do I seem like the kinda guy who’d put out after the first date?” he teased, then playfully swatted at the redhead when he winked and mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like, ‘I wish.’ They pulled up in the parking lot outside Roxas’ apartment and to the blonde’s surprise, Axel opened up his door and got out, heading around to Roxas’ side and opening that door as well. Once Roxas had exited, they meandered up to the door together. “I had a really nice time tonight, Axe,” Roxas said, hesitantly slipping his hand into Axel’s as he spoke; rather than rejecting the move, the redhead rubbed his thumb across the back of his hand comfortingly. “Let me know if you ever wanna do that again sometime.” Axel shot him a look, but remained silent until they got to the door. 

“Thanks for going out with me,” he said without a trace of humor. “It was far more enjoyable than I had anticipated, and I’m pretty excited to see what you’ve got planned for tomorrow.” Roxas grinned as he looked up into Axel’s face, and his words stuck in his throat when he saw the soft, tender expression there. Axel leaned down and placed a small kiss sweetly on his lips, then straightened back up. “Goodnight, Roxy.” Roxas turned the doorknob behind him, hesitating, but Axel was obviously planning on leaving on that note. “Text me!” he called archily as he spun on his heel and strode back to the vehicle. Stupid grin that the kiss left still on his face, he yelled back at Axel’s retreating form as the redhead disappeared into his car. 

“I will! See ya tomorrow!” He waved quickly before ducking inside the doorway. Sora’s and Kairi were still on the couch, but were both turned around, leaning over the back of the couch expectantly and nearly vibrating with shared excitement. 

“How’d it go?” Sora asked enthusiastically, while Kairi giggled. 

“I’m gonna need that stuff for tomorrow night, Sor,” Roxas said, his grin only growing as he let go of the control he’d been keeping himself under. “It was AMAZING!” He joined in when Kairi let out a giddy squeal and used the back of the couch for support as he vaulted over it to sit with them. “I’m gonna head to my room here in a sec, but that was easily the best date I’ve ever been on. He took me to an old clock tower you guys found.” Kairi looked startled, but handed him their pipe while she glanced distractedly to Sora. He took a massive pull, shaking his head at them as Sora raised an eyebrow questioningly at his girlfriend. “No, don’t bother with your secret couple communication, I’m heading to bed. Have a good night, guys.” He got up and practically skipped to his room, humming the song the choir had been singing during the ballroom dance. How had it gone? ‘Tale as old as time, song as old as rhyme’? He’d have to look that one up. As he placed his hand on the doorknob, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket, and he smirked to himself. As he entered the room and pulled out his phone, he realized that the text hadn’t come from Axel, as expected, but was instead from his brother. 

Saturday 12:48 A.M. 

Stupid Ven: hey man, you up? 

Roxas sat down on his bed, kicking off his shoes as he clicked into the message. 

Saturday 12:49 A.M. 

You: Yeah, what’s up? 

Stupid Ven: getting everything ready for tomorrow. 

Stupid Ven: I’m gonna be getting there pretty early dude. My flight lands at 6 Sunday morning 

Stupid Ven: what’s the plan? 

Roxas hit himself in the forehead. He hadn’t even checked to see when Ventus was getting in; he hadn’t asked anyone for a ride. He quickly exited out of the chat with Ven and opened up the one from Axel. 

Saturday 12:52 A.M. 

You: heyyy Axel? 

Axel: that was quick, Roxy. Miss me already? ;) 

You: unfortunately, that is not why I’m texting atm....so I kinda need to ask you for a huge favor :0 

Axel: why do I get the feeling that you’re about to make this conversation way less fun? 

You: so Ven just texted. His flight comes in sunday morning 

You: ...at like 6am 

You: ...and I forgot to ask around for a ride 

Axel: ... 

You: I will owe you BIG 

Axel: you know what, I just thought of how you can make it up to me. Tell him I’m in 

Without letting himself spare too much thought as to what Axel would be wanting, Roxas switched back to his texts with Ventus. 

Saturday. 12:56 A.M. 

You: I’ll be there to get you, send me the flight info 

You: also, because of our ride, we need to talk like now before you meet him 

Stupid Ven: oh? 

Stupid Ven: who’s ‘him’? 

You: well...remember when I texted a while back that there was a lot going on and things were complicated? Things haven’t gotten any less messy, and it’s mostly to do with him :x 

You: I’ve been into this guy since the second I laid eyes on him, but due to (legitimate -we’ve talked about it) reasons, he’s only interested in a hookup, and you know me...I’m only in it for the long haul lol 

Stupid Ven: grr...so you’re saying I shouldn’t be the angry big brother and instead need to be the polite-like-I’m-meeting-the-boyfriend one? 

You: exactly. I’ll fill you in on everything later, that’s all you need to know before you meet him 

You: He’s the older brother of my roommates girlfriend. 

Satisfied he’d said enough, he gave Ven a chance to type as he switched back to Axel while pulling off Sora’s nice shirt that he still wore and snuggling himself under his blankets. 

Saturday 1:01 A.M. 

You: THANK YOU <3 

You: now...what was it you wanted for me to make it up to you? 

Axel: you’re so impatient, Roxy. I’m over here just trying to relax and get comfy ;) 

You: what does THAT mean? 

Axel: it means I’m getting out of these fancy clothes and into bed, and you’ll just have to wait a minute 

You: ...if you’re just trying to get me to picture you getting out of your clothes, it’s not gonna work 

Saturday 1:04 A.M. 

You: ...ok, it’s totally working 

You: o.o 

Saturday 1:08 A.M. 

Axel: sorry, blondie, Dem came by to say goodnight and to give me something for you 

Axel: and before you even ask, no, it’s a surprise until I see you next, so don’t bother 

You: you are so BOSSY 

You: which is hot sometimes, but less hot when it means I don’t get my way 

Axel: you think it’s hot sometimes though? ;) 

You: mhm...like earlier. Much less so when you’re telling me no 

Axel: I almost never say no to you though ;) 

Axel: and you are TROUBLE when you get all bossy 

You: yeahhh have I mentioned I’m sorry? 

Axel: DONT be. Anything that involves you sitting on top of me like that does not need an apology 

Axel: speaking of though... 

Axel: wyd cutie? ;) 

You: lol. Nothing, just winding down. I’m starting to feel dead tired now that I’m in bed, though...I went on a date tonight ;p 

Axel: oh did you? What a coincidence, I did too 

Axel: mine was awesome...but my date was a little TOO hot. 

Axel: now I’m just laying here and I can’t get him outta my head 

Roxas quickly set the phone down on his chest to keep his hands off it; he needed to think for a second. He wasn’t an idiot; he could already see the path Axel was leading their conversation down. Messing around with the redhead wouldn’t be that bad, would it? That wasn’t leading him on, because Axel knew how things were, right? Besides, it wasn’t like he’d be giving Axel something of himself that he would regret losing later...he’d just be giving him words. Roxas wasn’t going to let himself have one more second of doubt; if he did, he might back out, but with his new perspective fresh in his mind he was feeling ballsy. 

Saturday 1:16 A.M. 

Axel: that wasn’t supposed to make you actually go away :( 

Saturday 1:18 A.M. 

You: sorry, I was sorting something out 

Axel: ooh, does that mean I get all your attention now? 

You: well, I am pretty tired... 

You: but ig I can stay up for a little longer if you still wanna talk ;) 

Axel: ohh yes I want to talk 

Axel: I want to do a lot more than just talk 

You: what exactly do you have in mind? 

Axel: YOU. 

Axel: I can’t stop thinking about how you look underneath me 

Axel: I’ve wanted that for SO long 

You: wanted what, exactly? Because to be fair, you’re always looking down at me 

Axel: no, I’m more specifically referring to that second after I got you on your back before I started kissing you where you were looking up at me with those huge eyes of yours. I’ve wanted to see you look up at me like that since I first saw you. 

You: yeah, well. You know the deal 

You: doesn’t keep me from wanting that, too, though 

You: I haven’t had too many sexy redheads pin me down with one hand, I’m discovering that I’m a fan 

Axel: ugh, Roxy. I wish you’d let me bring you home and drag you into bed with me 

Axel: I know, I know, but still...a guy can dream 

You: just say the word, Axe. You already know my answer. 

Axel: mmm wanna give me a hint at what I’m missing out on? Because right now, I’m trying to pick up where you left off, and while you’ve given me an arsenal of nice mental images to revisit, I’d much rather have something from you 

You: what do you mean? 

Axel: can I get a pic as my reward for the airport thing? 

Axel: pretty please Roxy? 

Roxas set the phone down again, staring up at the ceiling. Well, he hadn’t exactly been anticipating that. He wasn’t really the sending illicit pictures type; he’d always thought that was much better left to in person encounters. Actually, he’d never done it. None of his brief relationships had ever asked that of him. Where did that fall in terms of losing something? 

Saturday 1:29 A.M. 

You: that’s not usually my style, Axe...what are you wanting me to send? 

Axel: anything you’d feel okay about sending, I’m not asking for anything you’d feel uncomfortable about 

Axel: but obviously you know what I’m up to over here ;) 

You: I bet I can come up with something lol 

You: but you’re gonna have to give me a minute. 

Axel: mmm, for you, I would wait forever 

He flipped into camera mode on his phone as he thought about what he wanted to send to the redhead. Not something x-rated, but maybe something that hinted at it. He had a pretty decently cut body, especially for the amount of time he spent smoking in front of a screen. He was pretty proud of the little Adonis belt he’d developed. He turned on his table lamp and pulled the cord on the ceiling fan to turn off the lights there, more faintly illuminating his room and giving it a softer glow. Then he laid back down, pushing his pants and underwear down several inches to allow him to show more but also saving him from an accidental slip up. Holding his phone up and away from himself, he used the reverse camera to allow him to angle the device so that his head and shoulder muscles fit into the top corner and his iliac furrow to cut a ‘v’ into the opposite edge of the frame. He took a few pictures quickly, checked them over, and then picked his favorite before deleting the others. He was looking up into the camera and had what he hoped was a similar expression to the one Axel had mentioned earlier. 

Saturday 1:36 A.M. 

You sent an image. 

Axel: ohmygaia Rox 

Axel: you are so fucking HOT 

You: that’ll work? ;p 

Axel: roxas 

Axel: can’t you just let this happen? Just once. Promise I won’t bail...I fucking NEED you. 

You: axel.... 

Saturday 1:51 A.M. 

Axel: you know, one day it’s gonna happen 

Axel: and I am committed to making sure it’s the best you’ve ever had 

Axel: ;) <3 

You: you’re killing me, Red 

Axel: awh Roxy, didn’t you knock one out too? 

You: ...no 

Axel: wanna let me come help with that, sweetness? ;) I can be there in five minutes 

You: GOODNIGHT Axel 

Axel: awhhh Rox I’m wounded, that’s all I get? :’( 

You: thanks for everything tonight, truly, and I’ll talk to you in the morning <3 but get some sleep! Can’t have you passing out on our time tomorrow ;p 

Axel: much better ;D and as you wish, princess 

Axel: sleep well, Roxas <3


	19. Chapter Nineteen

The next morning, Roxas woke blearily to someone knocking lightly at his door. Who could be trying to get him up so early? It was- Roxas checked his phone- only nine twenty in the morning. He groaned loudly, rolling himself out of bed and onto his feet. 

“I’m coming,” he called, voice still thick with sleep. He heard a giggle from beyond his door as he looked around for a shirt to throw on. Finding a clean one hanging out of his dresser, he tugged it over his head as he walked to his door and pulled it open. There stood Kairi, holding a storebought coffee cup in one hand and a slip of paper in the other. 

“Morning!” she announced cheerfully, holding both items out to him for him to take, which he did automatically. “These are for you. You guys musta had some date.” She winked broadly at him before skipping off towards their living room. Roxas sat back down on the edge of his bed, taking a sip from the cup absently and realizing to his delight that it was his favorite splurge drink; one of the mocha chais from the Lucky Cat Cafe flooded his tastebuds with spicy, chocolatey sweetness. He took another, much deeper swig of his drink before flipping open the paper he had been handed. Now familiar with Axel’s sketchbooks, he instantly recognized the paper as a torn out page before he even registered the smooth, elegant script written on it. 

‘Morning sunshine! Stopped by your work - your boss says this is your favorite, and I hope she was right, because I didn’t want to text and wake you up. Let me know what the plan is for tonight! Can’t wait. 

-Axel’ 

A huge grin crept onto Roxas’ face as he refolded the note and tossed it on his desk, setting his cup down there as well after he’d had another gulp. He stripped off the pants he’d worn the previous night and found a pair of khaki-colored jeans to replace them with, then scooped up his cup and his phone before heading the direction Kairi had taken. He found her lounging on the couch, sipping a cup of coffee of her own and browsing halfheartedly for something to watch on the TV. 

“When did he stop by?” Roxas asked with just the barest hint of a pout in his tone. Kairi giggled again, pushing herself more upright against the armrest of the couch. 

“Like right after nine. He said to let you sleep, but you know me...I couldn’t wait that long. Besides, your coffee would have gotten cold.” She gave him an expectant look and then asked, too innocently, “Was there something else you forgot to mention? Because I have known Axel all my life and he’s NEVER gotten up early to bring someone coffee. Ever. In any circumstance.” Roxas felt that goofy smile take over his face again as he looked down at the cup in his hand. 

“He went to the store and asked Cass what I get,” he said fondly, taking another sip. His words pulled Kairi forward, bouncing up onto her knees and leaning forwards in her excitement. 

“AWH did he really? Roxas, who is this sweet gentleman you’ve replaced my brother with?” She laughed loudly, then pounced on him in a huge hug, wrapping her arms around his neck. “When you’re my brother-in-law, you’re gonna owe me big time,” she teased, pulling back with a huge grin of her own. Roxas flushed bright red, ducking his face quickly. 

“NO, Kairi. It’s not like that. I wish, still.” He let out a huge sigh and leaned back, swirling the drink around in his cup absentmindedly. “Even if tonight goes perfectly and is exactly everything I’ve wanted and fantasized about, that’ll still be the end of it. Still nothing more than this weird mostly-just-friends thing we’ve got going on.” He took another drink, then gave her a mischievous look over the rim of his cup. “Though I bet this has something to do with us texting after I went to bed and-“ 

“NOPE, that’s enough!” Kairi said loudly, drowning out his words. “I’m usually more than happy to get way too into people’s personal lives, but not when it involves my brother and that kinda stuff.” She stuck out her tongue at him, then flopped back onto her previous spot and clicked on a home renovation show she usually put on when she was hanging out alone. “What are you up to today? Sora’s got work, I was just planning on dominating the couch until a little later, since me and Sor agreed to hang out at the bar til at least close tonight so y’all could have some privacy. Well, we’re gonna go to a movie and then dinner and then the bar, but still; we’ll be gone til at least two in the morning.” Roxas was surprised; he wouldn’t have asked that of them, and it was a really nice gesture on their part. And one he could easily reciprocate right now, since she seemed to be ready to camp out; she had a cocoon of blankets around her spot, and in front of her on the coffee table were a laptop, her phone, and both the TV and Xbox controllers. 

“I’ll take the coffee as a sign and head out after I get ready. I’ll say bye on my way out,” he said, rising to his feet. Kairi reached down, picking something up off the floor in front of the couch, and offered him her pipe. “Kai, you’re wonderful, you know that?” 

“I do what I can,” she quipped as he took a hit, holding the smoke inside his chest for a long pause before exhaling. “Thanks, Rox.” He handed her back the pipe with an easy smile. 

“No problem.” Heading back towards his room, Roxas opened his texts from Axel. 

Saturday 9:37 A.M. 

You: thanks for the coffee <3 

He entered his room, and when he got no immediate reply, opened his messages from Ven from the night before. 

Saturday 1:02 A.M. 

Stupid Ven: that doesn’t mean I have to like him. 

Saturday 1:05 A.M. 

Stupid Ven: I was just kidding, Rox. I’m sure I’ll like him if you do so much. 

Saturday 1:09 A.M. 

Stupid Ven: I guess you fell asleep. See you sunday dude! 

Saturday 9:38 A.M. 

You: I’m the worst, sorry Ven. I’m super stoked about you coming down. And there really is a LOT I need to tell you about. Axel is just the beginning. 

After he sent off that message, he backed out into his list of messages and impulsively clicked into his conversation with Demyx. If he was looking for something to do, might as well. 

Saturday 9:39 A.M. 

You: hey man, you up? 

He backed out again, and a message he’d overlooked from the night before from Aqua caught his attention; he honestly wasn’t sure how he’d missed it, except that it had come during his date with Axel and he must have missed the alert. 

Friday 8:32 P.M. 

Aqua: hey Roxas! Just wanted to check in, see how you were. We’ve missed you the last little while, and Zex said you didn’t come to class today...is everything alright? 

Feeling guilty, Roxas sent her a quick reply as well. 

Saturday 9:39 A.M. 

You: hey! No I’m fine, I’ve had a lot going on the past few days. I actually had a date last night 

Satisfied, Roxas tossed his phone onto the bed and grabbed his backpack, stowing his laptop, charger, phone charger, and the rest of the micro SD cards he hadn’t filled yet. He stepped out of his room and into the bathroom briefly to brush his teeth, then back to his room to grab his bag and check his phone, which had one notification. 

Saturday 9:42 A.M. 

Aqua: oh good! And a date?? 

Aqua: was it with the mystery man Riku says you’ve been pining over? 

Aqua: ;) 

Since he had made his confession to Riku and Zexion, he hadn’t really brought up his love life with the group, but he knew the pair had their own guesses as to what was going on. He threw his bag over his shoulder as he replied. 

Saturday 9:44 A.M. 

You: well, it only sorta counts as a date, and I am NOT pining...but yes :p 

You: what are you up to? My roommate wants the house to herself and I’m about to leave, I could drop by and fill you in? 

Aqua: I just finished making breakfast :) come on in when you get here 

Roxas walked out through the living room, saying goodbye to Kairi as he shut the door behind himself, but received another text then. 

Saturday 9:46 A.M. 

Axel: well good morning gorgeous 

Axel: sorry, I have an actual client this morning, I won’t be able to talk much til after lunch, just wanted you to start your day off right like I did ;) 

Axel: I’ll text you soon, Roxy 

You: okay, Axe. And it definitely did :D I appreciate you 

Knowing he wouldn’t hear from Axel til later only slightly dampened his spirits; now that he’d taken the first steps towards being social, he found he really was missing his other friends. It had been almost a week since he’d been by their study hall last. The trip to Aqua’s was so brief he didn’t have time to dwell on it, however, as he was already at her door. He let himself in, and the smell of warm, sugary pastries assaulted his senses. 

“I’m here,” he announced as he strolled his way to the kitchen. Aqua’s head poked out before he made it there, however. 

“Hey Rox,” Aqua said with a sweet smile. “Sit down, I’m about to bring ‘em out.” He did as commanded eagerly; Aqua’s cooking was always amazing. She stepped into the room holding two plates with gigantic, fluffy cinnamon rolls on them. 

“I think I’m coming over here in the morning from now on,” he said in wonder as Aqua set the plate down in front of him and took her usual place at the head of the overlarge table closest to the kitchen with a laugh. 

“I don’t go all-out every morning, but I was really craving one of these,” she said, taking a bite from hers. “So tell me what’s been going on.” Roxas paused wolfing down the pastry and looked up at her with a bright smile. 

“I finished that code I was working on! The person I gave it to is sorta marketing it for me, and I’m making a lot of money from something I expected no return on, so that’s really awesome. My brother’s coming down tomorrow to visit for a little while. Since I left, I haven’t talked to him much; I’m really excited about him being here.” Aqua was grinning, tapping her fingers lightly on the table, when he trailed off. 

“Well, even though I’m still wanting to hear about that DATE,” she intoned heavily with a wink, “I’m really excited and happy for you, I know you’ve been working on that project for a long time. And can we please meet him? That’s so exciting! I’ll make sure everyone in our group comes early tomorrow! Please?” Roxas laughed at her warm enthusiasm. 

“Of course, I promise. I might even drag the roommates along too, if I’m gonna be introducing everyone. Y’all still haven’t met them yet, either.” Aqua clapped her hands together excitedly. 

“Oh that’ll be so nice! Finally put some faces to names,” she teased, then studiously returned to eating as she asked, “so what about the date?” Roxas rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment 

“It doesn’t really count, it was just ‘cause of a bet,” he admitted forlornly, but after taking another huge bite, he smiled. “I’ve been after this guy forever, but we’re...just friends.” The words sounded wrong to his own ears, and they clearly did to Aqua as well, because she gave him a sarcastic glance over her food. 

“Did he pay?” she asked innocently, and he nodded. “Did he set it all up?” Again Roxas nodded. 

“Okay yes, but-“ Aqua kept going as if he wasn’t speaking. 

“Are things the same as they were before?” That question stopped Roxas short. Things WEREN’T the same, but...that didn’t mean anything, right? And if that were the case, it was probably because of him sending that picture, nothing more. 

“I still don’t think that matters, Aqua, he’s got some serious stuff in his past that just...it doesn’t really seem like he can get past, and I can’t blame him.” She looked at him skeptically. 

“If you say so. Did you have a good time at least?” Roxas grinned widely, unable to curb his enthusiasm. 

“It was PERFECT. I’ve never had a date that even compared. He was sweet and charming and he’s usually not so...serious. It was just...perfect,” he gushed, and a kind smile filled her blue eyes. 

“I’m glad, Rox. You deserve someone who will treat you like the light you are,” she said with sincerity ringing in every word. “I think I wanna meet this guy sometime, too.” 

“I’ll see what I can do,” he chuckled, pulling his phone out after feeling a vibration. 

Saturday 10:13 A.M. 

Demyx: sup bro 

Demyx: I actually need to talk to you. Think you could drop by sometime today? 

You: sounds perfect, Kais kicking me out for the morning so I’ve been looking for somewhere to chill. I’m at a friends rn 

Demyx: do they smoke? Bring em 

Roxas peeked over his phone at Aqua, who was politely ignoring him and devouring her cinnamon roll. He seriously doubted it, but it wouldn’t hurt to ask. 

“Hey Aqua? Can I ask you a random question?” he began casually, slipping his phone back into his pocket. She flicked her gaze up to meet his and nodded. “What’s your stance on pot?” She gave a small sigh as she leaned back in her chair. 

“I’m not opposed to it, or anyone who smokes, if that’s what you’re wondering. I haven’t tried it before, so I can’t really answer too well. The right opportunity just hasn’t presented itself,” she said, toying with her fork and last few remaining bites. “Why?” 

“I’ve got a friend who needed to talk to me, and I said I was hanging out with you and he invited you along. But he sells weed, so smoking is definitely done freely over there. I wouldn’t want you to be uncomfortable.” She laughed delicately, reaching over to pat his arm. 

“I appreciate you sweetie, but I’ve actually got some work to do if we’re gonna be hanging out tomorrow instead of studying,” she replied cheerfully, picking up his empty plate along with her own. “But go ahead! I just wanted to make sure you were doing okay, and I’m glad to hear that you are.” Roxas pushed his chair back from the table, rising and pulling her into a one-armed hug. 

“You’re the best, you know?” She pushed him away with a laugh. 

“Yeah, yeah. Get out of here. See you tomorrow?” He met her question with a warm smile as he backed unhurriedly towards the door. 

“I’ll text you. Thank you for breakfast, and for letting me drop by!” She waved as he closed the door behind himself and began the walk towards Demyx’s house after letting the taller blonde know he was on the way. As he went, he hummed tunelessly to himself, enjoying the nice weather they were having; Destiny Islands was just starting to cool down, and there was a small breeze gusting playfully through the air. As he neared Demyx’s house, he saw a nondescript black sedan parked along the street out front, which was unusual as almost everyone knew to park in the spaces around back. He eyed it closely as he passed it, but the windows were tinted so darkly that he couldn’t clearly make out anything inside. He was just stepping up onto the wide porch when the front door cracked back on its hinges as two darkly clad forms pushed their way outside. Although a huge, bald man with large muscles and sunglasses was the first out the door, Roxas recognized the startlingly red hair of the second and called out in surprise. “Reno?” 

The redhead whipped his head around to lock eyes with Roxas, and it took him a second to force a smile to his lips. 

“Hey, yo. What perfect timing. Ya know where I can find Axel, yo?” Reno seemed agitated, upset, and that was mirrored on the intimidating man at his side. If he had just come from inside and Demyx hadn’t told him Axel was at work, though... 

“No, sorry, he stopped texting me earlier. I was just hanging out with Demyx,” Roxas said hesitantly, then froze in place like a frightened animal at the angry sound that ripped from deep within the man’s chest. 

“If you see him, keep him with you and have him call me, okay yo?” Roxas nodded his head jerkily, forcing the movement, and Reno stormed past him towards the vehicle without any further conversation. Roxas stared after them as they drove away, and once they were out of sight he dashed into the house and pulled out his phone as he walked quickly towards the living room. 

“Don’t bother calling; I just did and he must still be working on someone,” Demyx called towards the sound of his approach, so Roxas opened up his texts instead. 

Saturday 10:31 A.M. 

You: hey man, just ran into your uncle and some other guy looking for you at your place...they did NOT seem happy about whatever it was. Lmk when you get this ok? 

Then he looked up into Demyx’s face as he made it to the doorway where the other man was standing, and his face mirrored the confusion and concern Roxas himself felt. 

“Well, that was...something. They were being super sketchy, I didn’t want to tell them where he was, though I’m sure that’s where they’re heading right now,” Demyx said uneasily, and Roxas nodded. 

“Yeah I didn’t tell them, either. Did they say what was wrong?” Demyx shook his head and gave a small shrug. 

“No. Everything seemed fine when we were talking earlier. Anyway, come on in. We’ve gotta talk. Is your laptop in there? I hope so, I need you to get to work.” Roxas raised an eyebrow at him, and Demyx laughed, leading the way to the couch. “Come on,” he repeated, “I’ve got greens for you, oh amazing one.” Roxas snorted as he plopped down on the couch and took the offered bong. 

“What’s making you sing my praises, Dem?” he asked before taking his hit and handing the bong over to his host. Demyx stares at him open mouthed. 

“Hasn’t Axel filled you in?!” he gasped, making Roxas jump. 

“No? He just said you had news for me...” he trailed off as he saw the glowing smile take over Demyx’s face. 

“Rox, every chip you gave me is gone and I have over one hundred and fifty requests for them, which is growing by the hour. Some people are for sure selling them off to everyone they know, too, it’s spreading like crazy. I obviously am not going to reveal my source, but I’ve already heard it around; people are calling you The Programmer like you’re some sort of underground Gaia. And Axel’s got a literal case of munny for you, just from those cards you gave me before. I need as many as you can get me.” Roxas stared at him in shock for a second before yanking out his laptop and starting to get himself settled. 

“Good thing I was looking to kill some time today,” he teased, mood exuberant. Demyx took his hit as Roxas booted up his computer, then handed the piece back to the smaller man. 

“Whatever, it’s like two clicks for almost a thousand munny. I think I’m gonna raise the price, too. Supply and demand,” he shrugged offhandedly, “and you’re the only supplier.” The two chatted and smoked while Roxas worked, catching each other up on all the events that had been going on. Demyx briefed him on being bombarded by requests for the app as well as people trying to figure out his connection so they could attempt to meet and deal with ‘The Programmer’ themselves. He laughed that part off as a nothing, saying he’d take life in jail over ratting Roxas out. Then Roxas went over a highlights-reel version of his date with Axel and then bypassing until receiving the coffee that morning. Demyx’s face hinted that he had probably received much more information from Axel, but the taller man said nothing and let it slide. Once Roxas had a few of the micro SDs in a pile that were ready to go, Demyx pulled out his phone and consulted a notepad file of names before starting to send out texts. Within minutes, his phone was alerting constantly until he just silenced it while he got to work himself. “I’m gonna head out and drop off a handful of these, you’ll be fine chilling here, right?” Roxas nodded, not looking up from the computer until Demyx was already almost out of the room. 

“Oh! If you stop by somewhere that sells them, would you buy more of the cards? I’m gonna be out of the ones I bought soon.” Demyx laughed. 

“Affirmative, captain!” he yelled back as he continued out the door, and then Roxas was left in silence to work. Boo had come up at some point to lay by Roxas’ feet, but once Demyx had left, she took his vacated seat and napped next to the smaller blonde. He cranked out a handful more before the quiet was broken by his phone vibrating loudly on the tabletop where he’d placed it. 

Saturday 11:23 A.M. 

Stupid Ven: okay list your top five things so I can start coming up with questions now 

Stupid Ven: or just tell me to shove it bc I’ll be there tomorrowwww! 

You: haha I knoww I’m so excited. Be ready, we’re hitting a party in my honor tomorrow night ;) 

Stupid Ven: excellent. Ok, go. Throw the most unexpected things my way 

You: I have a tattoo 

You: I developed an illegal app that’s making me big munny 

You: my best friend is a drug dealer 

You: I’m actually attending my classes :p 

You: and you should still save the last spot for Axel because there’s so much to go over there 

Stupid Ven: 0.0 

Stupid Ven: ROXAS 

Stupid Ven: you’ve only been gone like MONTHS. Wtf man :0 

Stupid Ven: or you could have given me the occasional CALL 

Stupid Ven: ...does your friend give you a hookup? Bc it’s pretty dry back home right now, some sort of big cop bust has been affecting everyone lately 

You: don’t worry about that, dude. You’ll get a hookup no matter what. 

You: hey I’m trying to get some work done now though, can I get back to you a little later? I’ve been slacking long enough 

Stupid Ven: Yeah sounds good, ttyl 

Roxas set his phone back down and started up another chip’s download, but his phone went off again. He ignored it for a minute, assuming it was Ven, but it chimed again insistently, so he picked it up with a sigh. 

Saturday 11:29 A.M. 

Axel: Gaia, this is turning out to be an eventful morning to say the least 

Axel: can I give you a call? 

You: yeah of course 

Roxas held the phone expectantly, staring at it, and hit the green answer button the second Axel’s call popped up onscreen. 

“Hello?” Roxas said automatically, and he heard Axel chuckle. 

“Hey Roxy,” he purred into the phone casually. “What are you up to?” 

“Aside from being interrogated by Reno, not much. I’m at your place making Demyx more SD cards. What’s going on with YOU?” he demanded, anxiety seeping into his voice. 

“I’m wrapping up a session I had this morning, then I’m gonna have lunch, then sketches til I bail. I know you’re ultimately wanting to know about Reno, but first, what’s the plan for tonight?” Roxas was taken aback. 

“THAT’S what you want to talk about right now?” he gaped, tone caught between frustration and amusement. Axel gave a weak laugh. 

“Well, Reno’s visit came with requests, and I want to make sure they would fit into your plans,” he admitted, and Roxas attempted a laugh. 

“I was planning on you just coming straight here when you got off, and staying...until you wanted to head home,” he finished lamely, chickening out of his idea to ask Axel to stay over. His pause seemed to give Axel confidence, however. 

“That’s perfect. Reno says there’s some mixup with his work, I’ll explain later, and he wants me to stay away from home until he gets it settled. He’s gonna text me, and it should be by tonight, but just in case I was gonna ask if I could crash on your couch as a backup if it isn’t?” Roxas breathed a small sigh of relief, some of his anxieties diminishing in the face of excitement. 

“Well duh. I figured there would be a chance of that anyway since we’re getting Ven in the morning.” He could almost hear the smile in Axel’s reply. 

“Then it’s all settled. If you’re there, could you grab a fe things for me? I’ll tell you what to get,” he asked, and Roxas agreed quickly, getting to his feet. 

“Sure. What do you need?” 

“Head up to my room,” Axel ordered; Roxas had already started walking to the stairs before Axel had spoken, assuming he would be going to the redhead’s room. 

“Ok, I’m here,” he announced once he’d pushed the door open. 

“In my closet, sorry about the mess, there’s a row of shelves,” Axel said sheepishly, and as Roxas tugged the door back he saw why. The closet was a wreck, clothes and other various items were crammed haphazardly into the small space, and the row of shelves going up the back wall was out of easy reach without venturing into the chaos. 

“Oh my Gaia, Axe, I knew your room was too clean to be true,” he gasped jokingly, wading into the closet to access the shelves. 

“Yeah well. You’re looking for a pair of PJ pants, pick your favorites,” he said sarcastically, as almost all of the sweats were black or dark grey. Roxas grabbed a pair while Axel said, “While you’re in there, there are a bunch of band tees shoved in the back corner, if you’ll grab one of those too.” The small blonde did as he was bidden, locating the pile and seizing the first one on top. 

“Now what?“ he asked, trying to retreat from the closet without falling. 

“If you’ll get in the bed, there’s a phone charger plugged in behind the headboard, I’ll need that,” he mused, and Roxas rolled his eyes. 

“This is a lame ploy to get me into bed,” he teased as he struggled to reach the outlet. Even laying in the bed, he was just slightly too short to reach around easily, and had to set down the phone and shove himself up against the headboard to accomplish his task. “Okay,” he panted, returning to the call, “anything else?” 

“Toothbrush, in the bathroom, the red one. Hey I gotta go. Sorry.” The line disconnected abruptly, and Roxas wondered what had come up as he gathered the items and headed to the bathroom they shared upstairs. He had only ever gone in twice, as there was one downstairs as well, but he at least knew where Axel and Demyx kept their toothbrushes, in a cup by the sink. He ducked inside, quickly grabbing the right toothbrush, and then went back downstairs just in time to hear a quiet tap at the front door. Only pausing to set Axel’s things down on the kitchen counter, he curiously peeked through the peephole and saw another man in a suit identical to the one Reno’s underlings wore. He pulled the door open slightly, familiarity clouding his better judgement. 

“Can I help you?” he asked cautiously, and heard the man mutter something about ‘the blonde one’ to someone out of his view. 

“We’re looking for your roommate,” the man sneered, and Roxas’ eyes narrowed as he looked over the man. He had unruly auburn hair and wore a smug confidence like a mask over his features. Roxas curled his lip in a snarl. 

“What do you want?” he asked bluntly, and woman with short blonde hair stepped into view from beside the doorframe, looking much more professional than her counterpart. 

“His uncle’s employer is needing to contact him for clerical reasons,” she said dismissively, and Roxas bristled at the obvious lie. 

“Well, he’s not here. He won’t be back for a while. Run along now,” he fumed, but the man stuck his foot in front of the door, preventing it from its trajectory to slam shut. 

“Maybe we’ll wait,” he said aggressively, but Roxas just glared at him until he removed his booted foot. 

“Suit yourself. He’s not coming here, though, so you’ll have a nice long sit.” This time the door banged shut uninterrupted, and he was dialing Axel before the sound had faded from the air. The ring went on and on until a bored-sounding Axel told the caller to leave a message, and Roxas hung up, dialing Demyx frantically instead. When the taller blonde answered, Roxas started speaking before Demyx had even finished saying hello. 

“Dem, more of those guys with Reno just showed up at your house looking for Axel. They thought I was you; I told ‘em to get lost, but they seemed like bad news.” Demyx started to speak, but Roxas wasn’t done. “Dude right before that I was on the phone with Axel and he hung up suddenly and now he’s not answering his phone.” 

“Okay Rox, calm down. I’m on his side of town, I’ll just drop in. Call you back in a few,” he said quickly before hanging up, and Roxas was yet again left with a dial tone and building anxiety. What was going on? Why were Reno’s own people looking for Axel? The whole thing seemed really sketchy, and for lack of anything better to do, Roxas returned to his computer to keep his mind occupied until Demyx called him back. He made another SD, and another, and was working on his fifth one when his phone finally rang and was at his ear before he even checked to see who it was. 

“Yeah?” he prompted in a strained voice, and an unexpected but very relieving chuckle met his ears. 

“Wow, Roxy, where are your manners?” Axel teased lightly, and the blonde was so happy to hear his voice he couldn’t be bothered to be snarky back. 

“Hey, is everything okay? Did Demyx get to you yet?” His questions came rapid fire, and he knew Axel could hear his worry, but he didn’t care. 

“Yeah, Dem just left, he’s headed your way to fill you in on the whole story; I can’t here. A few of those goons showed up here, too, but I know one of them and he listened to me, called Reno on the spot. I’m fine, Dem said you might feel better if I was the one to call you, though.” As his breathing returned to normal, Roxas found the strength to grumble at the redhead. 

“You sure have some interesting friends,” he muttered, and Axel’s bark of laughter sounded harsh to his ears. 

“They’re no friends of mine,” he answered coldly, and Roxas was glad Axel couldn’t see the shiver the words sent through him. “I gotta get back to work if you want me to come home soon, though,” the man said in a more gentle tone, and the thought of actually having Axel in his presence again soothed his nerves. 

“Okay, Red, I’ll be back at the apartment before you head that way. See ya,” he said, hanging up after Axel had said bye as well. He went back to the computer as he impatiently waited for Demyx to arrive, and leapt to his feet when he heard the door open a short while later. As Demyx entered, he tossed an old duffel bag at him, and Roxas opened it to find that it was filled with munny. 

“That’s your take just from this outing,” Demyx said happily, “Axel still has the rest.” Roxas just stared at the contents, the reality of having that much munny coming to him finally sinking in. He quickly shook himself out of it, though. 

“Dude, what’s going on with Axe? Don’t try to distract me with your bag of munny,” he said, the joke falling flat in his worry. Demyx laughed anyway, clapping him on the back as he passed by on his way to the couch. 

“Everything is fine, and mostly sorted out,” he began as he sat on the couch and pulled a tray from underneath the coffee table that had his materials for rolling joints and blunts. He usually only pulled it out for parties or special occasions, so Roxas had only seen it a time or two. “Apparently the big boss over there got some intel that led him to look for Axel, but he sent some grunts rather than ask Reno to pick up his own nephew. Someone told him, though, so he talked to the guy and got them called off, but not til after they’d already started the search.” Roxas knew somewhere in the back of his mind that he looked like an idiot, standing in the middle of the room holding a bag of munny and gaping at his friend, but he was locked in place. 

“How big IS this gang?” he forced out, and Demyx shot him a grim look. 

“Think less gang and more mafia, or like old mob kingpins. Everyone knows the mayor over there is under the guy’s thumb; he owns that city.” 

“I think I’m just beginning to realize what kind of favor Axel called in for me,” he said faintly, accepting the blunt he was handed. Demyx nodded. 

“You know, despite everything he says, you’re the most serious relationship he has in his life besides family and me. Even if he denies it, you’re slowly becoming his center. I really do think he’d do just about anything you asked of him right now.” Roxas gave that some thought once he’d handed over the burning weed, but rapidly started to lose focus. 

“Shit bro, what is this?” he asked as he accepted it back from Demyx. 

“This is my ‘oh shit’ stash,” the older man replied, leaning back into his spot. “I don’t like all the negative vibes; this stuff wipes ‘em out.” Roxas agreed; even as a very avid stoner, he was already melting into the couch. The two traded it in relative silence save for the song that Demyx started playing from his phone. It sounded sorta like Skrillex, but the girl singing on the track was clearly the star of the song. 

‘Let me face, let me face, let me face my fears 

Oh, let me face, let me face, let me face my fears 

Wont be long, won’t be long, I’m almost here 

Watch me cry all my tears’ 

It ate away at Roxas’ heart the more Demyx repeated it, and by the time the blunt was roached, he had it memorized completely. He’d gone back to installing more apps, and was finishing up the last of the cards he had, waiting for the cue to safely eject. 

“That’s all I can do, someone’s gotta get me more of these SDs. I’m gonna order some, too.” Demyx nodded vaguely, then looked around, wondering aloud about the time. Roxas checked his phone clock- three forty-five in the afternoon, and about time for him to head back. “Hey man, I’m gonna bounce. Gotta get everything ready for tonight.” He have a bright smile reflexively, and it seemed to perk Demyx up. 

“I hope it goes well, Rox. We’re all still rooting for ya. And I’ll see you tomorrow! The party’s gonna be ridiculous.” He grinned proudly, and Roxas laughed at his dramatic pose. 

“It better be, Ven’s coming,” he retorted playfully as he gathered his things together, and Demyx’s eyes bulged. 

“WHAT? How am I always the last to know things like this. That’s so dope, I’m excited to meet him!” Demyx said loudly, looking genuinely enthused at the prospect. 

“Rock his world!” Roxas called as he made his exit, and left out the kitchen door after grabbing Axel’s things from the counter to expedite his walk home. He was halfway back before he remembered the pair that had threatened to wait outside, and wondered if they had made good on their threat or if they’d been called back by now. He shrugged it off, not wanting to bring down his quickly ballooning mood. He was so excited about the night they were going to have, ESPECIALLY since there would be no pressure or society around them; they could just spend quality time alone together, sharing things with each other, being intimate without actually getting intimate. The kind of night they’d have after being settled into being a couple for years, just relaxing and comfortable and easy. He was hoping, at least. He also hoped Sora hadn’t forgotten to help him out, realizing belatedly that he should have texted the brunette about it. Too late now, as he was nearing their door and getting more excited and nervous by the step. When he entered their home, he found it empty, dark, and tidy; Kairi and Sora had cleaned up before they had left. Touched by the gesture, it took him a second to notice a piece of paper on top of a stack of quilted blankets and a few pillows at the end of the couch. 

‘Hey Rox, these are for after dinner couch snuggles. I’ve got a few things added to our list on Netflix, and there’s popcorn on the counter and the chocolate covered strawberries in the fridge are a present from Kairi, she says you can thank her later. Other than that, I know video games are more likely, but I pulled out my chess board, too, in case you wanted it. Let us know how it goes! Good luck! 

-Sora and Kairi’ 

He was going to buy them something to make up for all this, he decided as he tucked the note into his pocket. Movie tickets and dinner. Something like that. He headed to his room to drop off his bags, changing into a new shirt, adding a tiny dab of cologne, and fussing with his unruly blonde spikes to occupy his time for a while, before ultimately heading to the living room and booting up the Xbox. He put on Skyrim, which was quickly becoming his fallback game, and spent the time waiting for Axel looting random villages. After what seemed like an eternity, a faint tap sounded on the door beforeAxel let himself in. 

“I can’t begin to tell you how glad I am to be here,” he drawled exhaustedly, heading towards the kitchenette to set down the two large grocery bags he was carrying. “Today has been so epically out of the norm for me, and it’s so good to see you.” He returned, coming over to drop wearily down onto the couch next to Roxas and throw his arm over the blonde’s shoulder. “Hey,” he whispered loudly at the smaller man. Roxas leaned his head briefly into Axel’s shoulder, both giving and receiving comfort. 

“Hey yourself. I’m glad you’re home,” he said warmly, then pulled himself back to sitting to look at the redhead. Curiously, he asked, “What’s in the bags?” 

“Stuff for dinner,” Axel answered, closing his eyes as his head tilted back to lean on the cushion behind him. “I’m making you Pasta Arriabata. It’s gonna be awesome.” Roxas gave him a disbelieving look, but knew he’d be seriously impressed if the taller man could pull it off. 

“Sounds fancy,” he teased, earning a twitch of Axel’s lips and an eye slitting open lazily. 

“Like I said, I’m full of surprises,” he retorted with a laugh, then pushed himself forward. “What did you do today?” 

“Not much, you know. Caught up with some people. Ven, Aqua...Reno,” and his tone grew sarcastic at the name. “Impersonated Demyx and kicked another two out of your house. Made some more cards. Just normal stuff. What about you?” Axel huffed dramatically. 

“Hey, it wasn’t like I expected any of that weird shit to happen!” he defended. “And let me tell you, it’s one interesting story.” 

“Okay, okay ,” Roxas returned, “How was your day?” 

“I thought you’d never ask,” he said with a wink. “So I wake up bright and early and feeling great, so I left for work early to get your coffee. Go to work and get going on my last portfolio piece, I’m stoked to say. Finishing the guy up when in bursts Reno, going off on this whole thing about how people might be looking for me, to stay away from home and to stay low until he told me otherwise. Blah blah blah. Then he leaves and I’m getting into my paperwork when I’m busts these two idiots from Reno’s gang. Luckily for me, one was an old...acquaintance,” he sneered the word, and it was clear that whatever past they had was not the most pleasant. “I made him dial up Reno before they drug me off, and Reno told them to get lost. But THEN,” he paused, leaning closer to Roxas, “I got to come home to your cute face, so everything is better now.” He kissed the tip of Roxas’ nose in a sudden movement that took him off guard and then sat back again looking to the TV, as he had snatched the controller out of Roxas’s surprised hand. “When do you want dinner?” He began to run around as Roxas’ character, clearly trying to figure out what Roxas had been doing in the game. 

“I was just plundering villages waiting for you,” he admitted with a laugh, “you can put in something else. And we can do dinner whenever you want to make it, I’ve got snacks for later.” Axel bounced up and headed towards the binder where they kept their games, but paused when he heard Roxas’ quiet, hesitant question. “Do you know why they were looking for you?” 

“You know what, I think I will start dinner,” he said after a few seconds of silence. “Come with me?” Roxas stood wordlessly and followed the redhead to his kitchen, waiting him out. When they got there, Axel busied himself with the items inside the bags and spoke without making eye contact. “You know, normally I’d just keep it from you, but since we’re doing this whole thing, I sorta feel like I owe it to you to tell you the truth. Just know that I’m taking care of it, Rox, so don’t worry.” Axel flashed him a quick smile, but rather than calming his nerves, it just set off a storm of butterflies in his stomach. “They were looking into something about computer stuff and wanted to know why I was meeting with Pete, and who I had brought with me.” He was studiously avoiding the look of concern Roxas was giving him now, searching cabinets for something. “Luckily, I told them Pete was helping me get rid of my police file and Reno backed me up that after that I was just in there making out with my boyfriend.” He rolled his eyes around to Roxas, laughing at the thought, and a tiny whisper of pain echoed through the blonde before horror overtook him; those people were looking for Axel because of HIM. Axel was returning victoriously from his search with a large pot when the smaller man found his voice. 

“Axe, I...I’m sorry. Oh my Gaia, I’m sorry. Just send them to me!” Roxas exclaimed bravely, or naively, and Axel’s eyes filled with rage and panic. 

“No. Absolutely no fucking way,” he growled, and then looked down, clearly trying to get a handle on himself. He filled the pot with water and set it on the stove, fiddling with the knobs briefly to get it heating up. “Roxas, who these people aside, I’d never give you over to someone to save my own skin. You have to know that by now, don’t you?” He turned fully toward Roxas for the first time since they’d entered the kitchen, one hand on his hip and the other thrown out, gesturing while he spoke. The promise and conviction behind the words made them impossible to doubt, but only sharpened Roxas’ worry. 

“You can’t take the fall for anything related to this, Axe, you’re the LEAST involved.” The man shrugged unconcernedly, turning back to the stove to upend a box of pasta into the water and stirring it with a wooden spoon he had pulled from a drawer. 

“I’m also the only one well-connected enough that having a meeting with these guys wouldn’t be a big deal,” Axel said flippantly. “You’re the LAST person I want them knowing about.” Roxas watched him chopping up some vegetables and herbs, and decided to let it go. 

“Aren’t I well-connected?” he murmured, stepping behind Axel and wrapping his arms around the man’s waist, leaning against his back in an easy embrace once the knife had been set down. Axel hummed happily, continuing to work on the food. 

“Hmm, I guess you are, since you’ve got me,” the redhead conceded, and Roxas liked how the words sounded far more than he should. He allowed himself that ideallic moment before stepping away. 

“I’m gonna go get everything set in there. Anything in particular you wanna watch? Show versus movie?” Roxas inquired, heading out of the kitchen to the living room. 

“Give me a few options and I’ll pick one,” Axel called back, and Roxas picked up the controller, switching from his game to the movie streaming service. He clicked into the account he and his roommates communally used and saw that Sora had added several awesome titles spanning several different genres and tastes. Roxas smirked, seeing several of his own favorites in the batch. 

“Okay, here goes. Choose: Firefly,” he named one of his favorite short-lived sci-fi series, “Chopped,” a contestant versus contestant style cooking show, “or this horror movie Sora recommended that I haven’t seen yet.” Axel poked his head around the corner from the kitchen. 

“They have Firefly?” he asked incredulously, looking excited. 

“You know about Firefly?” Roxas returned, equally surprised. It was one of those shows that few people knew of it but those who did had very strong opinions on it. 

“Of course,” Axel scoffed as he returned to the kitchen. Their evening continued on in a similar fashion, with easy, playful banter flowing from Axel’s surprisingly fantastic dinner over Firefly to the inevitable video games after that. When Roxas challenged Axel to a game of chess, the redhead was more than willing, but lost the majority of their games. To perk his mood back up, Roxas brought out the paper box left for them in the fridge. “Ooh,” Axel moaned when he saw the large, ripe, heavily coated fruit, “Chocolate covered strawberries are so my thing. How did you know?” Roxas laughed, pulling out the strawberries decorated in white and milk chocolate to look like they were wearing tuxedos. 

“Gift from your sister, can you tell?” he chuckled, handing one gingerly to the other man. Then he retrieved a bottle of wine he’d had stashed in the fridge because it was an expensive bottle that he’d never had an occasion to open. The pair sat together on the couch, talking and laughing and joking and drinking wine while Chopped played unobserved behind them. Roxas brought out his pipe and loaded them a few bowls throughout the evening, and it sat for the most part in the table between them until one or the other would pick it back up. A few hours passed unnoticed as they talked about deeper topics than they usually would, shared more of their lives with each other than they ever had before, and allowed one another into their thoughts and dreams and ambitions. As the clock wound down, Axel groaned and got to his feet during a natural pause in their conversation. 

“Hey, do you have that stuff from my place? Still no word from Reno so I’m gonna throw on those pjs; these jeans are too tight to sleep in,” he said with a wink; Roxas glanced at the clock and was bewildered to see that it was already after midnight, and knowing they had to be there to pick up Ventus in a few hours, put up no resistance. 

“Oh shit, I didn’t realize it had gotten so late,” he said stiffly as he rose as well and stretched. “Yeah, come on, they’re in my room.” He led Axel down the little hall and through his door, pointing him to the duffel bag where he’d shoved Axel’s stuff on the way out of their house as he grabbed a pair of pajama pants for himself that were patterned with little yellow chocobos. 

“Gaia, Roxy. This what you and Dem brought in today?” he asked after giving a low whistle when he removed his clothes to reveal the munny below. Roxas laughed awkwardly, reaching for a shirt at random from a pile. 

“Yep. Gotta say, I’ve never been given a duffel bag full of munny before. Kinda makes you feel like a big deal,” he joked, striking a pose that had Axel snorting with laughter. 

“You ARE a big deal. When I was at work today, I overheard a girl Xigbar was working on telling her friend about ‘The Programmer’ and this super exclusive app. Demyx already told me that’s you. You’re a legend right now, man.” Roxas was startled by that news...not that many people could want the app, right? But then he really thought about it, how it could erase someone’s criminal past, protect someone trying to hide...he could see how that could entice almost anyone. The thought was a little intimidating. 

“I didn’t...know that. This is all so crazy, it was just supposed to be a present for Demyx, for my own peace of mind.” His voice sounded bewildered even to his own ears, and he shook himself out of it with a laugh. Axel chuckled too, then tugged his shirt off in a fluid motion that left Roxas staring at his naked chest, and once his eyes focused in on it, the tattoo work of his chest piece in all its glory. The flames encircling the Roman numeral and pillars was consuming different doorways; some were closed and only showed the door itself, while others were open and different things could be seen in the openings. The balls of his shoulders housed the source of the flames; two circular bladed weapons he couldn’t identify were spitting the fire out across his chest and down his arms. Breaking his stare as soon as his brain pieced together what was happening, he turned slightly and yanked off his own. Axel didn’t even attempt to hide his appreciative gaze as his eyes raked over Roxas’ bare torso before he licked his lips 

“Hey Roxy, hold that thought,” he said as the blonde poked his arms into the shirtsleeves and was preparing to pul it over his head. He stopped his movements at the words, looking over his shoulder and locking eyes with the redhead with a playful smirk dancing on his lips. 

“Mmmm?” he hummed questioningly, and then before he could blink Axel had appeared in front of him and was gently tugging the shirt out of his hands to be discarded on the floor. Axel pushed lightly at him, moving him towards the bed and then down onto it, taking a place sitting next to him on the edge of the mattress. One of Axel’s hands threaded together with his, and the redhead used the other to push his spiky locks further away from his face reflexively. 

“Thank you for doing this with me, Rox. Thanks for letting me stay, and for sticking around waiting for me even though I’m a lost cause. You’re giving me new experiences and perspectives and I’m glad to have them despite everything I’ve said.” The taller man paused, and Roxas tried humor to bring them back from the serious direction they’d taken. 

“You needed my shirt off for that?” he teased with a little laugh, and something flashed in Axel’s eyes before a predatory grin dominated his face. 

“No,” he admitted slyly, using their interlocked hands to pull Roxas closer to him before he leaned over, nose almost touching Roxas’ in their proximity. “I needed your shirt off for THIS.” Then he launched into motion, pushing the blonde down onto the bed as he swung his leg over to straddle Roxas and kneeled there, towering over the smaller man. He leaned down to kiss Roxas gently, hands roaming freely over the bare chest of the man below him, and the blonde reciprocated immediately. The evening and night had gone better than he could have imagined; from the second Axel had walked in the door, both had acted like they were together and had been forever, so that by this point Roxas could almost convince himself that was the way things were. The wine was making him feel extra affectionate, and he was craving all of the redhead’s attentions, burning for them as if lit from within. It was with that fire in his veins that he felt his way across the smooth expanse of Axel’s chest, deepening their kiss as his fingers brushed down the ribs of the man above him, continuing down to tug at the belt that was wrapped around slim hips before- Axel swiped his hands away, pulling his wrists up above his head on the bed, and holding them there as he tilted his head and looked searchingly at the small blonde. “What are you doing, Roxy?” 

“You know exactly what I’m doing,” he snapped, struggling futilely to free his arms. Then he switched gears, going limp after rolling his hips forward and giving Axel a sultry smirk. “Or would you prefer to do that?” The redhead rolled his eyes, still not releasing his hold. 

“I figured for safety’s sake we could just stick to being shirtless, Rox. I don’t wanna go too far this time.” 

“There ISN’T a ‘too far’ this time. Let me go,” Roxas growled, resuming his struggle for freedom. “Don’t let me change my mind.” That pulled Axel up short. 

“What?” he asked incomprehensibly, as if he may have just misheard the words. Impatiently Roxas shifted, grinding his hips up into Axel who was still on his knees over the blonde. 

“You win. I fold. I fucking want you, and I have for way too long, and everything’s been so perfect, and-“ Axel’s lips silenced him, moving urgently against his own. 

“You’d give up, just like that, after all this time?” he murmured incredulously, nibbling on the side of Roxas’ neck as he spoke as if unwilling to fully remove his lips from the blonde. 

“Yes!” Roxas gasped as he received a particularly sharp bite from the redhead. “Fucking Gaia, Axe, I cant keep doing this. Unlike you, it’s been a really fucking long time for me, and I’m done trying to fight how bad I want you.” The hold on his wrists tightened for an instant while Axel’s mouth stilled. 

“Really?” he confirmed again, licking a thin line along a collarbone. “What about tomorrow?” Roxas viciously pushed away the thoughts that began to form after the question. 

“I’ll figure it out tomorrow. Stop stalling.” Roxas’ tone switched mercurially again to whine at his captor, “Please, Axel.” The smugly triumphant look that filled the emerald eyes above him stabbed sharply through him, but the feeling was gone almost immediately as Axel returned his lips to Roxas’ with a small sound of joy that melted his heart. Then, the man’s free hand twisted into his hair, tugging his head back and baring his throat for Axel’s warm mouth to explore. He was finally able to move his arms again when Axel released his hold to unbutton his pants, toying with the zipper once the task was accomplished. Roxas used his freedom to wrap one hand around Axel’s neck to pull him lower, while his other was trailing its way rapidly down Axel’s front to get him out of his remaining clothes. As the redhead pulled the zipper fully and began to tug the pants lower, he sighed, the sound evolving into a loud groan before he rolled himself to the side and off of the blonde. Laying on his back, arms thrown out to the sides, he stared at the ceiling. 

“I can’t,” he said frustratedly as Roxas pushed himself partially up onto his elbow. 

“Come on, Axe. I’m sober enough, I want you, I’m calling it,” the blonde insisted, trying to regain Axel’s touch. 

“Oh how I wish I could, blondie, but...I really can’t. Im sorry.” He sat up, looking forlornly down at the smaller man. “Why- HOW did you do this to me?” The words came out a moan as he reached for Roxas, cupping his cheek with a defeated look. Roxas was at a loss. 

“But...why?” Roxas asked pitifully, hurt coloring his tone. “Do you not...want that anymore?” Axel looked shocked by the idea, and rubbed Roxas’ cheek with the pad of his thumb softly. 

“No, love, I do, but not if it would cause you pain. I can’t make the selfish choice anymore, and I’m not quite ready to make the other one.” He looked pained, torn, lost; Roxas saw his own emotions on the redhead’s face. The endearing pet name, though, stunned him. He had never heard Axel use the word in relation to him in any form, though it came from him as naturally as if were an everyday occurrence. He wasn’t giving in so easily, though; he knew he’d never get the nerve up again if he lost it now. 

“It’s fine, Axel. I’m taking complete responsibility here, I’m in my right mind, what else do you want? Should I beg?” Axel groaned again, holding up his hands defensively. 

“Please don’t. I know you are, but at this point...we’re doing it the right way if we’re gonna do it,” he said firmly, scooting back to the side of the bed. “I’m the one taking complete responsibility...it’s me saying no this time.” 

“Seems like you’re ALWAYS saying no. How is this fair?” Roxas grumbled, reaching over the side of the bed to grab his shirt off the floor. “You finally win and I STILL don’t get any. If you’re not interested in me anymore, just tell me. I’m gonna end up spending the rest of my life holding out for you just in case you change your mind.” He yanked the shirt on over his head, and scooped up his pajama pants from where he’d dropped them. Hand on the doorknob, he sighed, knowing he was being childish and unfair, and turned back to a wounded-looking Axel. “I’m sorry, I’m being a jerk. You’re being kind and sweet, and I’m just...I’ll meet you out there, okay?” He gave a weak smile before he quickly fled to the bathroom to change. He shut himself inside and leaned heavily against the closed door, trying to regain his composure. What Axel was doing was kindhearted and should make him feel better, not hurt and defensive. He knew that. He knew the rejection came from a good place. He needed to get his shit together. Besides, this was probably about how Axel had felt the previous night; karma was a bitch. It only took him a few seconds to suck it up, and another moment to construct a cheerful, if fragile, demeanor. He traded his current pants for the more comfortable ones he had brought with him, then opened the door and followed the hall to the living room. There he found Axel, dressed in his sleepwear and waiting for him on the couch. He gave Roxas a tentative smile, and the blonde saw he needed to take steps of his own to bring the mood from before back and to repair the feelings that their words had left behind. “Hey,” he said softly when he’d stepped closer to the redhead. He held out his arms, offering a hug, and the taller man stood to receive and return the embrace. 

“Hey,” he answered into Roxas’ blonde spikes. Roxas tilted his face up, standing on tiptoe to place a hesitant kiss on Axel’s lips, then stepping around him towards the blankets Sora had left. 

“Would you find us a show?” he asked as he spread one of the blankets out over the couch and tossed a few pillows against the armrest on top of it. Axel shifted into motion, quiet for a moment, retrieving the controller and scrolling through titles. He settled on a mindless, ridiculous, physical-strength competition show called Ninja Warrior where contestants struggled through a series of complicated and challenging obstacles to reach the end of the course. Roxas had finished making Axel’s impromptu bed and stepped back, allowing the other to flop down onto it as he went around him to load them a bowl. “Want popcorn?” 

“Maybe later,” was his response as he scooted himself against the back of the couch, one arm forward along the bottom of the pillow and the other holding open the other blanket he’d thrown over himself. “Right now, I just want you right here.” Roxas laid down gingerly in the redhead’s arms, back pressed solidly against the man and facing the TV as well. He snuggled against the redhead as Axel tucked them in, and then the pair relaxed, smoking and watching trash TV with sporadic but easy conversation punctuating the overly hyped announcer on screen. Roxas felt his eyes growing heavy, and just before sleep took him, he rolled to face Axel, cuddling himself against the taller man’s chest and breathing in his unique bend of scents. 

“Night, Axe,” he mumbled, voice thick and barely above a whisper. Axel heard, however. 

“Sleep well, sunshine,” he chirped sleepily, tucking his face into Roxas’ shoulder and holding him tighter as they drifted from consciousness together.


	20. Chapter Twenty

A loud, incessant beeping pulled Roxas from sleep with a frown. What could be making that sound in the middle of the night? Roxas tried to reach for his phone to see what it was, but his hand bumped into something hard much closer than his bedside table. What...? He finally opened bleary eyes to see Axel, and quickly remembered he was tucked into the man’s arms and that the sound was indeed a phone alarm. Oh, that’s right, they were supposed to go get- 

“Ven!” Roxas gasped in a whisper. They were supposed to be going to the airport to get him. “Axel, wake up,” he muttered, pushing gently at the redhead as he tried to rouse him. 

“Mmm, five more minutes,” Axel groaned, hugging the blonde tightly to himself and trying to hide his face in spiky hair. 

“We gotta...go get Ven...” Roxas grunted as he struggled to extract himself from the other’s hold. Axel’s head snapped up. 

“Roxas?” he asked in confusion, looking around and trying to get his bearings. “What time is it?” He relaxed his grip, and Roxas sat up, looking around for the device still loudly insisting on attention. He found his phone half under the couch where it must have fallen out of his pocket and bounced to. He scooped it up, silencing the sound and taking in the time and missed messages. 

“Fuck, it’s five thirty two. We gotta get moving,” he moaned, rolling himself off the couch and standing up. Axel followed suit as soon as he had the room to move, heading for Roxas’ room. 

“Have a shirt big enough for me to borrow?” he said quietly to the following blonde, clearly trying to be courteous to sleeping roommates. 

“Probably,” said Roxas, entering his room and heading straight for the clean laundry he had piled in his closet. He found a shirt he thought might work and threw it to the redhead, then found another for himself. Axel slipped out of the room with his jeans from the day before and the borrowed shirt, leaving Roxas to change in his own room. Roxas was moving as quickly as possible, throwing one shirt on after ripping off the other as he tried to mentally calculate who would be there first. The flight could be delayed, or they could be queued up in the terminal...or there could be traffic, or difficulty finding the right gate...it would be a close call either way, and he didn’t want Ventus’s first impression of his home to be a lonely airport at the crack of dawn. He found some jeans and was hopping out the door while he was still trying to button them, almost colliding with Axel, who fit into his shirt, but snugly enough that the definition of his chest and abs were clearly visible. Roxas gave a quiet whistle and a wink before pushing Axel ahead of him towards the front door, the pair only pausing to grab keys and phones before dashing to the car. Once they were in the car moving down the road and Axel had lit himself a cigarette, Roxas chuckled. “Good morning. Sorry about the mad dash, I honestly completely forgot to set my alarms...I’m lucky I set that reminder after he told me or he’d have been stuck there.” 

“Morning to you, too, blondie,” he smirked, taking a long, deep drag off his cigarette. “Guess it’s airport coffee for us today.” Roxas stuck out his tongue, and they both laughed before lapsing into comfortable silence. After a few moments, Roxas looked back at Axel; the sun was just creeping over the horizon and was casting a glow around the redhead’s profile as he stared out of the windshield, smoking with a slight smile touching his lips. 

“Thanks for doing that with me yesterday,” Roxas said shyly, breaking the silence. “It really meant a lot. And I’m still sorry for being a jerk.” Axel heaved a sigh, taking a turn to follow the signs directing them to the airport. 

“Roxas, I...I know this isn’t fair to you. I’m not even afraid of being with you anymore, that’s the thing. I’d give up all those things I thought were freedoms, I’d take all the emotions and ties you gave me, but I just...every time I think I’m ready, I think of what it would be like if you weren’t anymore, or if something happened to you, or your feelings changed, and..I can’t. I’m just not there yet. So I’M sorry for being a jerk,” he forced the words out with difficulty, and Roxas could understand. Even if he wanted to promise Axel forever and knew he’d never change, he couldn’t guarantee he wouldn’t be hit by a bus or something. Axel would have to figure out how to accept that risk on his own. 

“You know I’m here, though, and I’m not going anywhere. Take all the time you need.” Axel chuckled wryly, glancing at him out of the corner of his eye. 

“I hope you still feel like that when you realize you’ve moved way out of my league since we met,” he said in a joking way, but Roxas saw the tightness in his shoulders and face, and was surprised to realize the redhead meant the words. 

“What are you talking about? You’re gorgeous, you’re charming, you’re sexy...and you actually give me decent competition in most of my games,” he threw in with a wink, hoping to draw a laugh from the man, but Axel remained somber. 

“Rox, you’re hot and loyal and interesting and kind, you’re now a genius programmer with a reputation amongst criminals bringing in a ton of munny, you know people of all walks of life and can fit in wherever you choose...and you’re gonna realize the most I’ve got to offer is an artist’s income and some pretty great bedroom skills, but not much more.” Hurt flooded Roxas; could Axel really think that of him? They had reached the airport and Axel was hunting for parking, so he was running out of time to converse in private. 

“You’ve got to be kidding me, Red. You really think I’m like that?” He didn’t want to admit how offended the implication had made him, so instead he flipped it. “Where did all the self-doubt come from?” Axel winced at the words, then shrugged as he composed his expression. 

“It’s not self-doubt, it’s knowing my own worth. I don’t usually undersell myself; I know I’m pretty awesome,” he said with a quick flash of humor and a wink, “but I’ve also watched you go from someone who was too good for me but not out of reach to someone I know is way above my level AND way too good for me. It’s...humbling. And it doesn’t help my fear of you losing interest.” He had found a spot and parked the vehicle, and although Roxas knew the clock was ticking and that Ven could already be waiting, the blonde was unable to stop there. 

“You are absolutely ridiculous,” he said gruffly, causing Axel to freeze with his hand on the door. “You are the most interesting, captivating, wonderful person I know. And though you don’t need the ego boost, let me tell you that I’ve been trying desperately to get you to think I’m even slightly as cool as you are since I first saw you. Now get your head back on straight, because I need you at your smug, cocky best to meet my brother.” He pushed playfully at Axel’s shoulder before jumping out of the car and heading around the back to where Axel was walking. He threw his arms around the startled redhead, giving him a quick hug before taking his hand and tugging him toward the terminal. He attempted to release his grip once they’d started moving; it was Axel who wouldn’t let go and kept his hold until they were walking through the entryway. Both looked around for the gate Ventus had texted him, and it was Axel who found it first, nudging Roxas with an elbow and pointing before leading them through the crowded walkway in the indicated direction. They made it to the gate just as the first passengers were making their way down the exit ramp, and they stood toward the back of the crowd while Roxas caught his breath after keeping up with Axel’s lanky stride. As people greeted one another around them or left at a hurried pace to get to baggage claim early, the crowds thinned until the blonde heard someone shout his name. 

“Roxas! Hey, Rox!” He straightened up, looking around until he caught sight of a familiar head of spiky blonde hair. 

“Hey!” he called back with a wave, and beamed as his older brother stepped past a family comforting a small child and approached them. Ventus looked the same as always; nearly identical to Roxas. When people were told there were twins amongst Roxas and his siblings, everyone assumed it was him and Ven, as his sisters looked completely opposite one another while he and Ven could swap clothes and fool all but the closest of friends. Ven had a slightly more honey tint to his hair and eyebrows than Roxas and his eyes were a hair lighter shade of blue, while the girls were ash-blonde and raven haired. Roxas saw Axel’s head whip between them, eyes wide, before reigning in the countless questions his expression held and settling into a relaxed slouch against a pillar behind them, arms crossed over his chest. Ventus threw his arms around his brother the second he was within arms reach, wrapping him up in a big bear hug. “I missed you, Ven!” he enthused into his sibling’s shoulder. 

“Me too, man,” he said, and then his eyes flicked to Axel when he asked, “Have y’all been waiting long?” 

“Ages,” the redhead drawled, and Ventus laughed. 

“Bullshit, Rox’s all out of breath,” he chuckled, pushing away his brother and ruffling his hair. “Thank you guys for picking me up. You must be...” 

“The name’s Axel. Got it memorized?” The redhead tapped his temple with a finger as he spoke, and Ven laughed, offering a hand for Axel to shake. 

“I’m Ventus. Call me Ven.” Axel shook his hand, and Roxas chuckled. 

“Come on, I need us to stop for some of that airport coffee we were talking about. How was the trip, Ven?” As the trip made their way to a severely overpriced and crowded little coffee shop built into the terminal, Ventus told them all about his trip, his plans for visiting different schools, and his hunt for an elusive degree program. Roxas was surprised to see how easily Axel and his brother got along; the redhead and Ventus were ribbing each other mercilessly, joking and laughing and swapping stories with an ease that bespoke years of friendship rather than minutes. If he wasn’t completely sure of Ventus’ preference in women, he would have been jealous. Once they were in the car, windows down while Axel smoked as usual, Roxas began to fill Ven in on some of the things he had missed. He told him about Sora and Kairi, about Demyx and his weed, about his program and it’s unexpected popularity. He told him about class and work and study hall and the heat that always seemed to envelop Destiny Islands. Axel had driven them wordlessly to the Lucky Cat Cafe, as it was still very early and Roxas’ roommate’s had considerably stayed away late into the night, and they camped out there for a while. They traded the terrible airport drinks for warm, fresh ones, and the three of them stayed like that for a few hours. Finally, Axel rose with a huge stretch after his phone went off a few times and he had checked the messages. 

“Okay you two, I need to get back to my place to help Demyx out, or there’s not gonna BE a huge party tonight,” he said reluctantly with a sigh. “You want a ride back or are y’all staying here?” Roxas jumped to his feet. 

“Ride, please. We were up too early to be walking all the way back.” Ventus followed suit and they exited towards Axel’s car with a parting wave to Cass. 

“I don’t know about you, Rox, but I need a nap before we kick tonight off,” Ventus yawned, pretending to collapse on Roxas, but Roxas pushed him off and skipped to Axel’s side. 

“Changed my mind; just a ride for one, please.” At the same moment, both Ven and Axel repeated his words suggestively. 

“A ride for one?” Then all three burst into laughter, entering the vehicle they had just arrived at. After the quick drive back to the apartment, Axel idled the car in the parking lot near their door to let them out. 

“Hey Rox?” He called the younger blonde back to him when the brothers started to head for the door. When Roxas has approached the driver’s side window, Axel reached out to grab the collar of his shirt lightly and tugged him down into a quick kiss. “See you tonight, blondie,” he purred softly into the surprised Roxas’ face before sitting back and pulling the car away. 

“Okay, first of all, I wholeheartedly approve. He’s the bomb,” Ven said as a blushing Roxas returned to lead him to the door. “You gonna tell me what’s going on with him yet?” 

“Sure, if you don’t mind going for a quick walk. His sister lives with me, remember?” Roxas said, veering away from the door to take them down the sidewalk instead. Ventus nodded, following his brother’s aimless path. 

“Shit, yeah, I forgot. Okay, so tell me the whole thing.” Roxas did, starting from first meeting him playing Halo right down to their at-home date the night prior. It was a relief to tell someone about Axel’s past and his confessions, since he hadn’t divulged that information to anyone else. At the end of his retelling, the pair continued their walk in silence as Ventus digested everything his brother had said. Roxas eventually led them back to his door, pausing with his hand on the doorknob. 

“Ready for introductions part two? Get ready, you’ve got a lot in store,” he said before pushing the door open and stepping inside. Sora and Kairi were sitting together on the couch, and as soon as they heard the door open, Kairi was yelling. 

“Oh my Gaia you two were the CUTEST thing to- oh. Oh! Are you Ven? Of course you are, hello!” Once she had seen Ventus, her usual bubbly personality expounded upon itself, and she was asking him a million questions before he’d even had a chance to sit down. Roxas laughed, holding up his hands to stop her outpour, and introduced Ven to the pair. It was Sora who couldn’t contain himself then, immediately asking about their almost identical appearance and trying to spot differences. Kairi joined in to start asking about what Roxas had been like as a kid, and with a groan and a loud complaint from Roxas, the next few hours were passed talking over a game of Halo that all four of them participated in. After a while, Roxas caught Ventus yawning, and paused the game. 

“Hey, guys, I think we’re gonna crash for a while so we can actually go out tonight. Before we go, can I drag you by my study group? I promised the gang I’d introduce you all.” Everyone agreed, and despite both Roxas and Ventus offering to let the two keep the living room, Sora and Kairi left, saying they were going to go offer Demyx and Axel a hand. Roxas gave Ven his room, claiming he wanted to be a decent host but admitting to himself that he wanted to sleep with the pillow and blankets that still smelled like the redhead who had occupied them the night before. Once he heard his bedroom door close, he snuggled into the blankets, closed his eyes, and dreamed of Axel.


	21. Chapter 21

“Oh my Gaia you two were the CUTEST thing to come home to last night,” Kairi said giddily, pretending to swoon into Sora’s arms. Axel rolled his eyes at her, choosing not to reply in favor of unloading the absurd amount of beer and liquor they had purchased into the refrigerator. “Who are you and what have you done with my asshole of a brother?” Demyx elbowed Sora, who’d come over to help him, the two of them standing on the other side of the kitchen from the siblings setting up cups on the counter closest to a keg on the floor by the island. 

“See, Sora, my theory is that they’ve actually been dating for like weeks, they’ve just decided that keeping us in the dark is-“ A dishtowel thrown from across the kitchen hit him in the face, causing his exaggeratedly loud whisper to end with an indignant splutter. 

“Will you guys give it a rest already? Sheesh,” Axel grumped, drawing a laugh from the other three. 

“Really, though, man...when are you gonna get around to it? If you try to tell us that you’re honestly still just stringing him along to get in his pants, I think we’d all fight you,” Sora asked politely, but there was an intimidating tone in his voice that he usually never carried. Axel rubbed his temples as he shut the fridge. 

“I’m trying,” he growled out frustratedly. “I am, okay? You guys just don’t...Kairi, what would you do if something were to happen to Sora?” His sister rolled her eyes, pushing a large bag of ice towards him to put on the freezer. 

“Axel, you aren’t weak and you’re not a coward. I’d be beyond devastated if something happened to Sora, but the chance of that is SO small...I wouldn’t trade all my memories of him and time with him just to avoid the pain I’d feel losing him. That would be worse than any pain imaginable.” 

“Besides,” Sora jumped in, “aren’t you guys already a little too close to pretend that you’d feel nothing if he left now?” Axel looked horrified. 

“What? No, I...it would be easier, because...because we haven’t...” Axel’s voice faded, and he fell into somber silence while they finished getting the kitchen ready. Demyx huffed, ambling around the island towards the door. 

“I’m gonna bounce, I’ve still gotta hit up Neku to DJ and talk to Rei about managing the door. But Axe my man, I’m gonna leave you with something to think about; what if Roxas finds someone else? What if he meets someone at the party tonight? Are you gonna just sit there and let someone take him from you because you don’t have the balls to just date him already? Come on, dude, you’re smarter than that. Go get some sleep. I’ll catch you guys tonight,” he waved behind him at everyone without looking as he passed through the door. Axel’s grumbles were halfhearted at best and Kairi’s heart went out to him. She patted his shoulder gently, and when he looked up at her, it was a hollow and defeated face that met her gaze. 

“We only push because we love you. Both. It’s sad to see you wasting time that you could be enjoying each other,” she said kindly, but he just shrugged his shoulder out from under her hand. 

“I know, Kai. That doesn’t make it any easier, though. Dem’s right, I’m gonna go crash. Sorry.” With that, Axel turned heel and slunk off to his room, leaving Sora and Kairi looking at each other across his kitchen. Kairi walked around to the brunette and leaned into him, letting him wrap his arms around her. 

“He’ll figure it out, won’t he? Everyone else manages to, right?” Sora stared off in the direction Axel had left in with a slight frown. 

“I dunno, Kai, sometimes I get the feeling he’s got more than the normal levels of paranoia about this. If he weren’t your brother, I’d wonder if there was something in his past that had messed him up.” He forced a laugh, but Kairi remained silent. She wondered again as she had countless times throughout her life what her brother remembered of their parents. 

“Let’s move the furniture and then head back. I need to cheer back up before we party,” she said after a long moment. Sora nodded, and the two began setting the house up for another epic party there.


	22. Chapter Twenty-Two

Roxas was fully awake immediately when he heard his roommates enter the apartment, laughing and talking excitedly. He sat up and saw Ven lounging in a chair, taking a hit from Roxas’ pipe with the Xbox controller in his lap. 

“What time is it?” he asked blearily as Kairi put her hands on her hips and made a face at him. 

“Have you been asleep this WHOLE TIME? It’s six thirty, we need to start getting ready!” she exclaimed, giving Ven’s hair a tousle as she passed by on her way to the bedroom. “Hurry it up if you still want us to meet your friends!” Sora laughed as Roxas tripped over himself trying to get off the couch and upright again, calling back as he followed his girlfriend. 

“We’ll be out in fifteen or so.” 

“Make it twenty!” Kairi yelled back, voice muffled by walls. Ven looked at his brother with a laugh of his own as Roxas snatched up the pipe to take a hit. 

“Hey Sleeping Beauty. I tried to wake you up, but you called me Axel and told me to get in bed with you, so I left you alone,” Ventus said with a wink as he stood as well. “I may raid your closet, I didn’t bring a ton of party clothes.” 

“Dude, you know how I keep my closet. If you can find anything, you’re welcome to it,” Roxas said, leading Ven into his room again and heading straight for his mass of clothes. “Also, I totally did NOT.” Ven chuckled, spreading his arms wide in a complacent gesture. 

“Hey, Whatever you wanna believe. I’m stealing this vest dude, it’s awesome.” He snagged a long vest with red and checkerboard accents and tried it on over his black v-neck tee, while Roxas found a slim fitting, long sleeved black hoodie with an oversized zipper. The two squabbled over styling products like they were in high school all over again before finally both agreeing that they were ready to go, and left Roxas’ room to find the waiting couple in the living room. 

“Where to, Rox?” Sora asked, hand on the door as soon as the blondes had come into sight. 

“We’re walking, it’s just down this row. I figured we should just walk to the house, too, since no ones gonna be in any condition to drive later. Sound good?” He led them out amidst mutual agreement, but as they walked, Ven started grumbling about going to study hall instead of straight to the party. Kairi and Sora has started telling stories of events from similar parties, and it was hyping everyone up to get there. Ven was still complaining as Roxas led them up the steps to Aqua’s apartment. 

“I get dragging me to meet everyone, but we could totally ditch and get to the party sooner and just meet them tomorrow, and aren’t you supposed to be making me want to stay he-“ 

“Ven, these are my FRIENDS,” Roxas sharply cut him off. “I spend a ton of time with these guys and they’re all awesome. And I promised I’d bring all you guys so they could meet you. We can just stay to say hello and then leave, but if Aqua’s cooking, we should stay.” Kairi giggled as Ven rolled his eyes. 

“Sure sure, I’m being rude. Let’s go meet your friends,” he sighed, and Roxas opened the door like he owned the place and let them in. 

“I brought visitors!” Roxas shouted as he closed the door behind Sora, and his words were met with a small, giddy squeak and a chorus of ‘hey’s from the other room. As he stepped around the tiny wall that separated the entrance from the living/dining area, he came face to face with a beaming Aqua. 

“Oh my Gaia, Rox, FINALLY. Hello, I’m Aqua, welcome!” Roxas sidestepped slightly to indicate people as he introduced them, knowing the others gathered at the table would be able to see as well. 

“Aqua, these are my roommates, Sora, and Kairi,” he said, and they each gave a small wave. “And this is my brother-“ 

“Ven,” the older blonde said, but something in his voice was off, and Roxas whipped his head around to look at his brother. Ven looked...startled, was the best word Roxas could come up with, or amazed. He was staring at Aqua with huge eyes, his mouth twisting into a sort of embarrassed smile as she gazed back at him. She stepped back first, gesturing for everyone to follow her inside. 

“It’s so nice to finally meet you all,” she said warmly as she led them to the huge table she had managed to squeeze into the small apartment. “Roxas talks about you guys all the time.” She laughed lightly, stopping behind Terra as she pointed out those who were seated. “This is Terra,” she said, lightly patting the brunette’s hair, “the one with silver hair here is Riku, and that’s Zexion. Grab a seat, I was just about to get the cookies out of the oven.” Then Aqua gracefully slid away and into the kitchen, and Roxas took the seat open by Zexion. 

“What’s going on?” he asked the slate-haired male casually as Sora and Kairi took the seats between him and Riku, who was seated next to Terra, leaving Ven with only the option of sitting on Terra’s other side as Aqua had the final chair already surrounded with paperwork. When he sank into place next to the brunette, Terra leaned over to him. 

“We aren’t total nerds, I promise. We’ve just been using study hall as an excuse to hang out for years. It’s nice to put a face to a name, man. How was your trip?” Roxas noted that Terra seemed to have broken right through the weird mood Ven had fallen into; as if they were old friends, he and the larger man began a quick and easy flow of conversation. Next to him, Sora, Riku, and Kairi were laughing together at something the small brunette had said. 

“Nothing til now,” Zexion mused, watching the groupings as well. “Roxas, it looks like they belong here. Who would have guessed?” He laughed quietly, Roxas joining in. 

“Yeah, right?” Roxas agreed in a hushed voice, “But Ven was being super weird about-“ 

“Cookies are done!” Aqua cheerfully announced as she returned with a large plate balanced high with fresh, warm cookies. The group quickly fell on them as she set the plate down with a laugh and backed away to her seat. 

“Oh dear Gaia, these are so good,” Ventus moaned around a mouthful of the treats, and several people made sounds of agreement. Aqua giggled, then focused her attention on Roxas’ brother. 

“I’m glad you like them! I find everyone tends to focus better after eating something,” she said playfully, and Ven gave her the same blank look of amazement he had worn before. Aqua seemed to take no notice, however. “What are you doing for your degree, Ven? Roxas only said you were getting the basics out of the way, he never said what you were pursuing.” 

“Um, well, I’m not completely sure, since every university has something slightly different, but I’m really fascinated by ancient weaponry, so I’m looking for comparable degrees in hoplology...it’ll probably ultimately be through anthropology.” His voice faltered at the end, as if he realized what he was saying probably meant little to his audience, but they quickly jumped in. 

“Oh that’s awesome!” Aqua said excitedly over Terra questioning the term hoplology. 

“Hoplology is a science that studies human combative behavior and performance...you’re familiar?” he asked Aqua, looking astounded. She giggled. 

“Well, not with the field, but I know what it is. I’ve always been interested in human behaviors.” 

“Have you ever taken weapons training?” Terra asked with much more enthusiasm. “I started fencing my senior year of high school.” As Ven started an in-depth discussion on the subject of fencing and swords, Roxas tuned them back out again. 

“You know, honestly I thought he’d end up talking to you,” Roxas said offhandedly to the man beside him, who had also been watching the trio interestedly. “He’s much more scholarly when he’s working on something.” 

“Then perhaps it’s a good thing he’s not,” Zexion said with a quiet chuckle. Roxas looked at him, eyebrow raised questioningly. Zexion inclined his head towards them, “Roxas, don’t tell me you don’t know what’s going on.” 

“No, no way. He had that look on his face as soon as he...saw...No, you think?” It was slowly dawning on him that maybe Ven’s weirdness could have been due to infatuation. He groaned softly, but with a fond smile growing on his face. “Zex, what have I done?” 

“You’ve given him a reason to stay, I suppose,” Zexion said offhandedly, and Roxas felt his smile growing by the second. Impulsively, he decided to push his friendship with the group to a new level. 

“Zex? Do you guys ever party?” he asked, and as he saw the man’s eyes widen in surprise, he realized the group on his other side had heard as well. 

“Yeah! Come with us, we’re about to head to a huge party at my brother’s place!” Kairi exclaimed loudly, looking at Riku, which caused the final three to take notice. 

“A party?” Aqua asked, sounding hesitant, but Terra was more enthusiastic. 

“Hell yeah! Oh come on, we never go out!” he defended after receiving a look from the blue-haired girl. Ven piped up quietly at her side. 

“It’d be really cool, I don’t know any of these people either, except Axel.” 

“Is that Roxas’ secret boyfriend?” Riku interjected with his question, and then everyone started talking at once; Roxas loudly denied, while Kairi brightly said ‘essentially!’ at the same time Ven called ‘he wishes!’ That got another round of questions from those in the group who weren’t in the loop, and after a few seconds of overlapping voices, Terra’s booming one rose clearly over the others. 

“Hey Rox, when are y’all going? After you leave here?” That quieted everyone down as the blonde replied. 

“Well, we were gonna hang out with y’all for a little and then go, but if everyone’s gonna come then we could head over whenever. It’s really no pressure,” he said, looking to Aqua. “It was just a thought, you don’t have to come. Or you could come and just hang out. It’s no big deal.” The tall girl looked around at the excited and expectant faces and then to Zexion with a small smile. 

“You in, Zex? I’ll go if you do.” All eyes were on the slate-haired male, who shrugged with a quirk or his lips.. 

“What harm could it be? I’m in.”


	23. Chapter Twenty-Three

Ven hadn’t left the side of Aqua and Terra since they’d been introduced, Roxas was pleasantly surprised to notice, as the trio brought up the rear of their group. They were walking towards the house, and the closer they got, the more evident it was that they were nearing a house party; they saw a few other groups of people headed in the same direction they were, and the number of cars lining the street was increasing exponentially. When the house came into view, Roxas was surprised the cops weren’t ALREADY there waiting, although he supposed they must have some sort of in with the patrolling police since they did this every so often. The house was lit with flashing lights and there was music that could be heard from several houses away blaring loudly. People were milling around outside, and once they were close enough to be making their way through the crowd, Roxas saw that there were a few ping pong tables set up and what looked like a huge beer pong tournament was happening across them. Kairi was at the head of their group and quickly led them through swarms of people to the side door and into an even more chaotic scene inside. 

“Well look who’s here! Our other guest of honor, everybody!” Demyx crowed from his position standing atop their kitchen island. He jumped down amidst the oblivious drunken cheering his words had caused and bounced over to them, tripping into Roxas’ side as he went in for a hug but somehow avoiding spilling a drop from the red solo cup he was holding. “Hey Rox, Sora, Kairi...other Roxas...random strangers. Let’s get some shots lined up!” he yelled over his shoulder towards the group behind him, and a few people obliged, setting out a ridiculous number of shots for everyone who could squeeze in. 

“Dem, are you trashed? I’m not gonna bother introducing you to everyone if I’m just gonna have to do it again tomorrow,” he laughed, helping steer Demyx towards where the partygoers were setting up the drinks. 

“Course not, there’s too much party left! I’ve just been pregaming,” Demyx said indignantly, extracting himself from Roxas’ supporting arm and grabbing a few shot glasses. He handed one to Kairi and one to Aqua, clearly trying to be charming as he announced, “Here’s one for the pretty ladies you’ve brought,” and receiving a giggle from both girls. He passed another few to Roxas to hand out as he gave another to each Sora and Ventus. “Here you go, Sora and other Roxas.” Roxas handed his two to Terra and Zexion, and then turned to receive the last ones alongside Riku. Once everyone had a glass, Demyx leaped back onto the kitchen island, holding his shot glass aloft. “Listen up everyone! You’re here because that guy right there,” he pointed to Roxas and everyone turned to look, some people crowding into the doorways from other directions, as Demyx continued, “is the smartest, most badass guy I know, and he’s making us a shit ton of munny! Everybody give it up!” The house shook with the sound of the cheering that ensued, the sound continuing from outside where the partygoers there must have heard and joined in. “Put your glasses up!” Demyx worked the crowd, and a sea of cups and glasses filled the air. Roxas glances at Ven, who beamed at him as he held his own glass into the air. “Let’s throw ‘em back for making that munny, and get this party started right!” The tall blonde man threw back his shot amidst a riot-worthy collection of shouts, screams, and cheers as the crowd threw back their own drinks in solidarity. The DJ cranked back up after that, clearly located somewhere close enough to hear Demyx’s or the crowds’ yelling. Demyx jumped lightly back down, clasping Roxas’ shoulder. “Alright, get some drinks, then follow me and introduce everyone outside where it’s quieter. Neku’s killing it with the music,” he said loudly, indicating that the small group follow him out the side door. Once they’d all had a chance to fill a solo cup up with their choice of the liquors and mixers that filled the counters, the group exited the packed kitchen to find Demyx lounging against the side of the house next to the door. 

“Dude, this place is crazy,” Roxas said, sidling up to the taller blonde. Demyx smirked at him. 

“Just wait til you actually check out everything. But anyways, who are all your extras?” He finished his question as he watched the rest of his study hall group make their way out, and Roxas saw his eyes go wide as Zexion and Ven finally slipped out the door, making the group complete again. Roxas chuckled, assuming he was taking in the similarities between himself and his brother. 

“Well, we’ve got Aqua and Terra there, Riku, that’s Zexion, and my brother Ventus,” Roxas listed, pointing out who went with each name. Everyone waved or greeted Demyx, and he shook himself out of it with a laugh and a wave. 

“Sweet, it’s nice to meet you guys, fill in some of the stories. I’ve gotta head back in for a minute, but I’ll catch up with you guys while the party’s going on,” he said hastily, backing towards the door again, but Roxas snagged his elbow before he could get away. 

“Hey, where’s Axel?” Roxas asked a little quieter, and Demyx gave him a blank look. 

“Uhh...last time I saw him was when we started the beer pong tournament. I’m sure he heard that toast, though, he’s gotta be around here somewhere.” He paused thoughtfully, and then put on a brave face before leaning in to whisper in Roxas’ ear, so quietly the shorter blonde almost didn’t catch what he said. “I need to talk to you about something real quick, when you have the time. The living room’s half dance floor but in the back is the smoking section. Loop around and catch me there?” He was gone before Roxas could answer him, side door banging closed behind his hasty retreat. Kairi laughed to Sora, then reassured the others. 

“Don’t worry, that’s normal for drunk Demyx. He’s a butterfly of excitement, flitting around everywhere at once. You may not leave remembering much of the party, but everyone ends up remembering him or something he did.” Sora nodded in agreement, turning to say something to Riku, as Terra whispered something to Ven and Aqua that started them giggling. Roxas was entirely sure he was the only one who heard the quietly musing Zexion to his right. 

“I can certainly see how that would be true.” Roxas peeked out of the corner of his eye and watched Zexion sip from his cup as he seemed to absently observe the people milling around them. That was...an interesting comment, Roxas decided, and then spoke up as a few people cut through their little group. 

“I’m gonna go look for Axel. Do y’all wanna stick together or check the place out?” he said loudly, as the bass had just picked up for whatever song was playing and sounded deafening even outside. 

“I’m gonna take Riku to sign up for the tournament,” Sora said with a determined gleam in his eye. “With a crowd this big, you know there’s gonna be serious prize munny up for grabs.” He grabbed Riku by the arm and tugged him towards the tables, Kairi following them with a parting wave and a smile to the others. Aqua and Terra exchanged a look before the brunette spoke to Ven. 

“Wanna enter, too? I’m a pretty decent shot, I can carry the team if I need to.” He winked broadly at Ventus, challenging him, and the blonde responded enthusiastically. 

“Yeah! I don’t think I’m gonna be the dead weight, though. I met you at a study hall; something tells me you don’t party near as much as I do.” Ventus said with a determined grin. Aqua turned towards Roxas and Zexion. 

“We’ll all wait for you there. You coming, Zex?” she said brightly, waiting for him to join her. He hid his expression with his long pieces of hair, turning his head as he spoke. 

“I think I’ll check the place out. I’ll catch up with you,” he replied casually, already beginning to edge away. “Thanks though.” Roxas and Aqua shared a look, then the girl shrugged and turned to follow her friends with a wave to Roxas. Now alone, he headed back into the house behind Zexion. He could start out his search for Axel inside, since there was a good chance the cheering could have drawn him there. Back in the kitchen, he edged around the people milling around getting drinks and talking to see if Axel was there, but having no luck, he headed towards the entrance and what sounded like the source of the music. He squeezed his way through the hall and came to the front rooms, and saw that they tiny study off the entrance had been turned into a huge DJ booth, with as many people packed around it as could fit in the small space. There was a guy with spiky auburn hair and a purple sleeveless hoodie deep in concentration behind the table, huge headphones on his head blocking out the sounds of the party. A quick scan of the people dancing and moving around in the small space told him that Axel was elsewhere, so he turned back towards the kitchen. Running out of options, he ventured into the living room, which was totally unrecognizable. All of the furniture had been moved to form a tight, secluded seating space in the back which was packed with people smoking Demyx’s bong, but the rest of the room was bare to make space for all of the sweaty bodies writhing in time to the sounds of the music. The lights were off and in their place was a web of interlaced rope lights weaving across the ceiling, their numbers so great that the space still had pretty good visibility. There were way too many people filling the room for Roxas, as short as he was, to scan the crowd without standing on something, and he was getting irritated, so he headed towards the dedicated smoking space to go see what Demyx had wanted; he had spotted the taller blonde man there, talking and gesturing wildly to his captivated audience, when he walked in. It took him a minute to edge through the people huddled around the edges of the room talking and taking a break from the dancing, but he finally stumbled his way through the last few people and into the relative calm of the stoners’ area. 

“There you are. Still haven’t found him?” Demyx asked, handing the bong over as he approached. Roxas shook his head, taking his hit and handing the bong to Marluxia, who had taken up his role as the person keeping everything in rotation. The pink haired man obviously had a much more difficult task at hand than usual, as Roxas noticed a few blunts making their way around the circle as well. 

“Hey Marly. Long time no see,” he said as he hopped over the back of a couch to sit in a small space available between the two of them. Marluxia nodded in greeting as he finished with the piece and gave it to the girl on his other side. 

“I’ll be back in a few, you guys. I need to borrow Rox for a minute,” Demyx said as he rose, tugging on the sleeve of the small blonde. 

“Awh, But I just got h-“ Roxas started a complaint, but Demyx’s elbow in his ribs stopped him. “Uh, I mean yeah let’s go, man.” He let himself be led away with a small wave to Marluxia and tried to keep up as Demyx wound sinuously through people like he was dancing along with them. They reached the doorway, but instead of leading him out, Demyx led him up the stairs to the peace of the empty second floor. “What’s up, Dem?” he asked curiously when the man finally stopped moving and turned to look at him. 

“Okay, Rox. I’ve been trying to figure out how to ask you about introducing me to that guy you brought for, like, forever.” Roxas stared at him blankly, confused. 

“What...are you talking about?” he finally managed, feeling like he needed to get on level with the other blonde and taking a huge, gulping drink from his cup. 

“That guy, with the blueish grey hair. I saw him in a picture with you once, and oh my Gaia your boy is HOT.” It took Roxas almost a full twenty seconds for his brain to put everything Demyx was saying together and then burst out laughing. 

“ZEXION? Dem, no, you don’t mean Zex, do you? Because I love you bro, but I really don’t see that happening.” The taller blonde looked disappointed, a pouting lower lip starting to stick out. 

“He’s not into guys?” Roxas shook his head slowly, as it was sinking in that the inebriated man was serious, and drained the last of his cup’s contents before speaking. 

“I think he is, actually, but...you don’t know him, Demyx. I’m just not too sure how...many common interests you’d share,” the shorter man hedged, changing his mind at the last moment from telling Demyx that he was almost assuredly not Zexion’s type. He couldn’t even picture the calm, reserved, studious Zexion hanging out with the carefree, lazy stoner in front of him, but Demyx looked unfazed by his assessment. He leaned forward, placing both of his hands on Roxas’ shoulders and staring him dead in the eyes. 

“Please, Roxas, please man. If anyone should get this, it’s you. I’ve been solo for a super long time, and that’s who’s caught my attention. You gotta let me at least TRY.” He had a valid point. And he’d been helping Roxas with his own infatuation with Axel. Roxas supposed he sort of owed it to the blonde, no matter what his opinions were. 

“He’s wandering around here somewhere. Wanted to head off alone to check the place out. Help me find Axel and we can look for him while we go.” Demyx’s face lit up. 

“You’re the BEST,” he said happily, using his hold and pulling Roxas into a crushingly tight hug. “Lead the way, oh wonderful and kind one.” Roxas chuckled, heading back towards the stairs, and paused halfway down to look over the heads in the crowd for either of the unique hair colors he was searching for. No brilliant flames of hair stood out, but he did see someone heading towards the DJ’s room who looked like Zexion. 

“Refill me, would you? I’ll meet you in the kitchen,” he said, thrusting his cup into Demyx’s hands and hurrying off to catch the man before he lost him. He slid between bodies as quickly as he could, making it to the room in time to see Zexion slip out the front door. Now worried his friend was planning to leave the party without saying anything, Roxas pushed past the last few clusters of dancers and out the door as well, looking around quickly once he reached outside air. Muffled by walls and doors, the thumping bass still vibrated the ground underfoot, giving the night a wild, surreal feel. Zexion was leaning against the porch railing on his elbows, cup dangling from one hand as he used the other to rest his chin on as he stared thoughtfully into space. Roxas slid silently up next to him, leaning into his side to nudge him before copying his pose with his elbows on the rail. “Not looking too impressed, Zex. Are you not enjoying the party?” Zexion looked down at him, surprise showing on his normally calm expression. 

“Roxas. Oh no, this is...very impressive. I’m just getting some air,” he answered calmly, taking a drink absently from his cup. “I just kind of like to crowdwatch, familiarize myself with the surroundings, see if anyone...stands out.” His pause made Roxas raise an eyebrow, and he blurted his question out before he could stop himself. 

“Zex, do you smoke?” Ah well, better him than Demyx asking if the answer was no, he supposed. Zexion tilted his head to the side, gauging Roxas’ expression and clearly weighing his words before he spoke. 

“As a researcher, I tend to keep my mind as clear as I possibly can,” he hedged, then held up his cup with a little half-smile on his lips, “but as you can see, I don’t always. Why do you ask?” Roxas let out a surprised laugh. 

“I would never have guessed. Huh,” he mumbled, rethinking his original assessment. “Just curious. Can I ask you one more?” Zexion gave him a look that said he saw right through the smaller blonde, but nodded. “You aren’t seeing anyone, are you? I know we don’t usually talk about this sort of thing, but...” The question lingered in the air for a moment as Roxas trailed off, and Zexion turned to look out across the lawn. 

“I’m not, no. It’s actually been a while.” He looked down at Roxas again, tilting his head. “Any more inquiries to satisfy your curiosity?” Roxas just laughed, then nodded his head in the direction of Zexion’s cup. 

“Drink that and lets go get you a new one,” he said innocently, pushing away from the railing and taking a step towards the door. Zexion’s curiosity was evident in his expression as he downed the rest of his drink in one gulp before signaling for Roxas to lead on. They made their way to the kitchen and found Demyx and Axel pounding down drinks with a fizzing shot glass at the bottom of each one. Axel banged his down on the counter first, followed a split second later by Demyx, and several onlookers cheered drunkenly as Axel whooped in triumph. His shining eyes fell on Roxas then, and his smile grew impossibly brighter. 

“Roxy!” he called before catching sight of the man shadowing him and narrowing his eyes dangerously. Roxas was a little surprised to see the shift in his expression; he looked almost...jealous? “Who’s this?” the redhead asked, voice silky and threatening at the same time. The blonde’s eyes widened at the sound. 

“Axe, I’ve been looking everywhere for you! This is Zexion, one of my study hall buddies.” He turned to Demyx, who’d fallen silent at the slate-haired male’s approach. “Demyx, you left before anyone could talk to you. Zex is a TA in our art history class,” he said, taking his cup from the taller blonde’s hands, and Demyx looked surprised. 

“You’re our T.A.?” he asked blankly, and a small smile pulled Zexion’s lips up at the corners. 

“You sound surprised,” he murmured, stepping closer to Demyx by the counter so he could make himself a drink. Roxas looked up at Axel, who had visibly relaxed once he realized what the blonde was up to. 

“Come on,” he whispered, standing on tiptoe to reach close enough to Axel’s ear to be heard. “Let me take you to meet everyone else.” Axel nodded, and the two made their retreat unnoticed as Demyx regained some composure and started a conversation in earnest. Once they had made it out the kitchen door and had reached a volume level where normal speaking was possible, Roxas shot Axel a look. “You didn’t look like you were a big fan of Zex,” he teased the taller man, bumping into his side playfully as he spoke. He took another big drink from his cup, wincing at the amount of alcohol Demyx had added to it, as Axel laughed uncomfortably while rubbing the back of his head. 

“Yeah well. What can I say, I’m not the biggest fan of strange guys following you around while you get drunk,” he huffed, and Roxas felt a surge of warmth flow through him. 

“Aren’t you supposed to meet people at parties?” he teased, but reached over to slide his hand into Axel’s. The hand gripped his tightly, as if afraid he were going to slip away. 

“Only if you’re not happy with what you’ve got,” Axel said, voice sounding tight as he seemed to realize at the same time Roxas did that the blonde technically had nothing. By that time, though, they were nearing the tables, and Roxas got his first look at the tournament. There were three tables set up, with three different matches running at the same time, and the large crowd gathered around cheered and joked with the players as points were made or lost. There was a card table set up behind them, where an irritated-looking girl with chin length silver hair had a lock box for munny and a large dry erase board with team names beginning to fill out a tree of blank spaces leading up to the final match. The closest table of them had two pairs of unfamiliar people playing against each other, and Roxas instead focused on the last two tables. At one table, Ven and Terra were facing off against two large guys wearing school football jerseys. Their game had clearly only begun a short while ago, as less of the crowd was circulating them, and almost all of the cups were still on the table. They were calling jokes and insults to their opponents, but Roxas noticed both kept glancing at the last table, so he let his eyes follow theirs there. He first noticed Sora and Riku, standing with the crowd gathered, Sora yelling something illegible at the top of his voice which was what had drawn his attention. Facing off at the table on one side, Roxas recognized Larxene standing with a mountainous man, both scowling and jeering at their opponents, with only a single cup in front of them. Across the table stood Aqua and Kairi, who had three cups left, apparently having decided to join together to form their own team. Kairi was lining up to take the shot, Sora yelling encouragement, but Larxene’s friend shouted something at the last moment that caused her to lose focus, and the ball bounced off the table a few inches to one side. Axel and Roxas approached Sora and Riku’s position, reaching them as Larxene executed a perfect shot into one of the cups and cackling with excitement. Kairi wrinkled her nose as she fished the ball out of the cup and downed its contents, tossing the ball into a cup of water in the center of the table. 

“Hey,” Roxas muttered to them, as most of the crowd fell silent as Aqua stepped forward. “They’re winning?” Sora couldn’t take his eyes off the game and just waved at him, but Riku turned to the pair of them with an awestruck look in his eyes. 

“Kairi plays decently, she’d do well on a lot of teams, but Aqua is...unstoppable. She hasn’t missed a shot this game or last. She’s drinking, too...it’s pretty epic.” Roxas focused his attention on the game and the determined fire burning in Aqua’s eyes as she lined up facing off to the right, her hip and side squared up with the table. Larxene hissed and her companion shouted as she took aim and carefully but forcefully threw the ball straight into their last cup, and the crowd exploded in cheers and roars. Aqua laughed as Kairi jumped up and down and then hugged her blue-haired teammate excitedly. 

“Aqua you’re the BEST! How often do you play beer pong?! This is insane!” she squealed, jumping up and down while still holding Aqua. She caught sight of Roxas alongside Sora and Riku, Axel standing closely behind him, and gently ushered Kairi towards them. 

“Nice shot!” Sora exclaimed as the girls approached, offering a high five to Aqua before pulling Kairi into a hug. “You guys are killing it, it’s gonna be such a shame when you go up against us and get crushed.” He emphasized his words by squeezing Kairi into his hug, and she giggled as she fought her way apart. 

“Roxas, is this Axel?” Aqua asked, giving a sweet smile to the redhead as she spoke. Riku looked up at the man interestedly while Roxas grinned and nodded. 

“Yep, your gracious host for the evening,” he said with an exaggerated flourish towards the redhead, who had a faint blush under Aqua’s stare. 

“That’s me,” he said with a laugh while rubbing the back of his head. 

“That’s Aqua, and he’s Riku,” Roxas said, now craning his head to look back to the second table as another couple of teams began resetting the table vacated by Aqua and Kairi. “Looks like you’re gonna have to wait a little to meet Terra, though.” The group collectively began to head towards Roxas’ brother and his teammate, who’s game was now in full swing and drawing attention. A large number of the people gathered seemed to know the two football players, and as more of their cups disappeared, shouts from the crowd began taunting them for losing to a little kid. Ventus must have been using the insults as motivation, because the next shot he took sank a more difficult to reach cup that was alone to one side. Terra patted his back in support, but as more jeering started, Roxas decided it was time to fuck with the opposition. He elbowed Sora, telling him to start cheering Ven, and then he slithered away through the crowd until he was standing just off to the side of the two athletes. Some of the people in the crowd were looking back and forth between him and Ven in confusion, and Roxas saw Axel already shaking with laughter upon realizing what Roxas was about to do, but the players were much too focused on the game to have seen him arrive by their side. Just as the one taking the shot started his forward momentum, Roxas spoke loudly enough to draw his attention. 

“You’ll never beat us, you know,” he stared up into the man’s eyes as he spoke, giving him an expressionless look he hoped was as creepy as he had intended it to be. The man jumped, his ball barely even making it onto the table, and whipped his head from Roxas at his side to Ven across the table and then back again, expression horrified. But as everyone including his teammate began laughing uproariously and Roxas walked around the table to fistbump his brother, the guy’s shock turned to anger. 

“Hey, that’s no fair! Crowd interference!” Terra threw him a cocky smirk. 

“He never touched you, or the ball,” he called, and before the guy’s open mouth could start shouting, Axel stepped in. 

“Official saw the shot, the play was fair,” came his smooth ruling, and when the jock turned to the source of the voice to argue, he clearly recognized Axel and backed down immediately. 

“Alright, alright, take your shot kiddo,” he grumbled, turning back to his friend with a frown. His friend leaned in, whispering something into his ear, and he nodded back, taking a swig from a bottle he had sitting on the table. The game picked back up as Terra stepped forward, and although the way he tossed the ball seemed ridiculous to Roxas, it floated slowly through the air before falling delicately directly into a cup. They ended up edging out the other team by a single shot, and shook hands with the guys afterwards. Roxas introduced Terra to Axel while Ven went to Aqua’s side to praise her success. By then Riku was ushering Sora away to the first table, as their team had been called to play. Their game was much more relaxed, with just as much playful banter happening on their own side as there was across the table, and their defeat was lighthearted. Aqua and Kairi had been called away just before they lost, and the group drifted towards their table as Sora and Riku joined them. Roxas caught Axel by the sleeve rather than follow, however, and nodded his head towards the house, holding up his empty cup. 

“Wanna head inside for a little? I need a new drink.” Axel nodded, and as they moved away from the dense center of the mass of bodies around the tournament, they were finally able to talk in the relative quiet of the walk to the door. 

“You guys don’t hold back when you party, do you?” he asked with a grin, and Axel winked in return. 

“If you’re gonna do something, do it right,” he quipped, then softened his tone. “Your friends seem nice.” Roxas laughed, exuberant. 

“I’m glad everyone is getting along so well. Have you seen how Ven is with Aqua?” Axel smirked as they ducked inside. 

“I’m more interested to see how your little matchmaking endeavor pans out,” he said, scanning the crowd in the kitchen. Belatedly remembering he’d left Zexion with Demyx, he did as well, but saw neither male in the densely packed space. 

“Demyx asked me to get him Zex, it wasn’t MY idea,” he defended, still having trouble imagining the pair working out. Axel shook his head, a little smile touching his features. 

“Demyx is extremely picky, but I’ve never seen anyone he chooses turn him down. He must be doing something right,” joked the redhead, leading them to the counter and pouring a bright blue liquor generously into both their cups. 

“Yeah, but I don’t think his usual type is like Zexion,” Roxas pointed out. “Studious, calm, and quiet are like, the opposite of Demyx.” Axel looked down at him pointedly as he topped their drinks off with orange soda, turning their cups contents a greenish color. 

“Opposites attract, shortie,” he said, handing one of the cups to Roxas. “Wanna check in on them before we head back out?” Roxas nodded, and Axel began pushing his way through the crowd towards the living room with Roxas following in his wake. The redhead made a beeline for the couches huddled together for the smokers, and Roxas was already worrying about how uncomfortable Zexion probably was and if he’d still be Roxas’ friend after being abandoned with- His train of thought derailed as he came close enough to the couches to see the people there and stumbled to a stop beside Axel, eyes as wide as dinner plates. Zexion and Demyx were sitting in the heart of the group, across the circle from where Axel and Roxas were and completely oblivious to their arrival. Zexion’s head was down as he took a long, deep hit from the bong while Demyx sat beside him, one arm draped across the back of the couch with his fingertips winding through the tips of slate colored hair. As Zexion sat upright, Demyx leaned forward, his free hand wrapping behind Zexion’s neck, and pulled him into a deep kiss. When they broke apart, it was Demyx who exhaled the hit with a triumphant, exhilarated grin before the group whooped and catcalled the two men. Zexion’s laughter faded as he met Roxas’ stunned gaze and a blush tinted his cheeks, but the smaller blonde recovered himself and threw the embarrassed man a wink. “Sheesh, Dem, I’ve never known you to be stingy with the weed,” Axel teased, dropping down onto the couch beside Marluxia, who passed the redhead a freshly rolled blunt and a lighter. “A guy can’t even take his own hit around here anymore?” Zexion ducked his head, hiding his face in his disheveled longer bangs, but Demyx just sighed happily, leaning back and toying with the man’s hair again. 

“Don’t worry, as co-homeowner, I’ll let you impose your tax on someone else,” the taller blonde said as Roxas perched on the armrest of the couch beside Axel since there were no other spots left to sit. Axel laughed, looking at the man beside him as he exhaled and passed him the now burning blunt. 

“The power to tax is the power to destroy,” Axel quoted obscurely, watching Roxas inhale with an almost wistful look in his eyes. Roxas quirked an eyebrow at his tone, but Demyx just shrugged at him while giving a suggestive smirk to Zexion. 

“Oh I’ve got the power to destroy alright,” he purred, which caused the man next to him to roll his eyes while flushing scarlet. Roxas jumped in on the banter next. 

“Zex, I feel like I don’t even know you guys. You’re in here with this guy,” he stuck out his tongue at Demyx, “and Aqua’s outside becoming a beer pong legend. What does Terra do, bench kegs for fun? Please tell me Riku’s secretly a raver.” Zexion cracked a smile at that, shaking his head. 

“We don’t party together very often, so I couldn’t say for sure. I knew about Aqua, though. She played in a bar tournament a year or two ago and demolished the competition.” Roxas received the bong from a tiny brunette girl to his right, and a spark of mischief popped into his mind. 

“Hey Dem,” he said, throwing a sideways glance at Axel. When Demyx looked over at him, Roxas stayed boldly, “As co-party-honoree, can I claim Axel’s right to taxation since he’s abandoned it?” Demyx caught on, and made a sweeping gesture as if bestowing a great honor upon the petite blonde while Roxas took his hit. 

“I hearby grant you the right,” Demyx smirked at the redhead as he spoke, who had no time to protest before Roxas, feeling brave from alcohol and present company, grabbed the collar of his shirt and yanked him forward into a kiss. He coaxed Axel’s mouth open with the tip of his tongue, and once given entrance, he exhaled the smoke as Axel drew the breath from him. They pulled apart, and Axel puffed out the faint cloud of smoke to more teasing from the circle. 

“Taxation is the price which civilized communities pay for the opportunity of remaining civilized. Albert Bushnell Hart.” Zexion’s quote earned him a look from Axel, a laugh from Roxas, and fluttering eyelashes and a blown kiss from Demyx. Marluxia had been looking at Zexion as if he were trying to figure something out, but the quote made recognition spark in his eyes. 

“Why Zexion. I didn’t recognize you all wrapped up with Demyx,” he said smoothly, sounding amicable, but Zexion stilled at the voice. 

“Marluxia. How...interesting it is running into you here,” he said, sounding bored. “It’s been a while.” A smirk drifted over Marluxia’s expression, and his voice became sickeningly sweet. 

“I heard you went back to the faculty to explain yourself and to beg for your spot back. So wonderfully predictable of you,” Marluxia’s lip curled disdainfully as he finished his words, and several things happened at once. Roxas and Axel both heard the tone Marluxia was using and responded, turning with glares and a snarl from Roxas to face the pink-haired man. Marluxia smiled smugly at Zexion, who had looked away, hiding his face again in a curtain of hair. But Demyx exploded. He had been bristling with barely contained fury since the use of his name, but when Zexion turned away as if the words had been a blow, Demyx leapt to his feet and glared at the man who was nearly a fixture in the house and a longtime friend. 

“Get out of my sight,” the tall blonde spat, eyes burning and hands clenched into fists where he stood squared off in front of Zexion as if he were defending the man from an attack. Marluxia looked shocked, then rage flashed in his eyes before his face froze in a mask of contempt. 

“Demyx, you don’t even KNOW this-“ Marluxia began, but Demyx snarled at him, turning to look behind him at Zexion’s distraught face instead. 

“Out of the house or just out of your face?” he asked softly, and with a panicked expression, Zexion held up his hands. 

“No, no, Demyx, I can just...I’ll go find Riku and the others,” Zexion mumbled, rising to his feet. Roxas was at his side immediately, glaring at the pink haired man as he guided Zexion away from the now silent group of stoners and towards the impromptu dance floor, Axel following as they passed his position. Demyx had nodded at the words, turning back to Marluxia with his posture still screaming he was ready for a fight. 

“Marly, you heard the man. Feel free to stay, or get the hell out, I don’t care. Just make sure I don’t run in to you again for the rest of this party.” With that dismissal, Demyx whirled around and after his friends, leaving a wounded, angry Marluxia behind them. 

“Demyx, I’m sorry. I didn’t expect to...you really didn’t need to trouble yourself,” Zexion murmured when the tall blonde had caught up to them as they were winding their way through the kitchen. Demyx waved off his words, throwing an arm around Zexion’s neck when he was close enough to reach him. 

“Dude, fuck that guy. Lets go see how the tournament’s going. Do you know Axel and I are the final boss? The champs have to beat us for the prize munny after their last win.” He derailed the conversation so easily that the mood had changed back before anyone really had a chance to notice. Axel gave Roxas a look that mirrored his own bewilderment over the events that had just transpired, and the two followed the couple in silence back to the tables outside. Darkness had really fallen outside, and the streetlights and lights from the house were now getting help illuminating the area by two sets of headlights from a few of the parked cars. The surly-looking girl in charge of the bracket spotted Demyx and Axel as they approached and furiously waved them over. 

“About time, you two,” she grumbled as they deviated from the tables to obey her direction. “These are the last games of the losers bracket, then we’ve got four teams left, so two more sets til you’re up.” 

“Thanks Fuu,” Demyx trilled as he pulled Zexion away and towards where their group was gathered, releasing his hold before he spoke. “Sup guys. Anyone still in?” 

“We’re the only ones out,” grumbled Sora while Riku nodded before assessing Zexion’s proximity to their host and raising an eyebrow questioningly at his friend. Roxas caught the quick wink Zexion gave him, and Riku grinned wolfishly in return. Ventus waved from his place beside Aqua, almost bouncing in excitement as loud cheering signaled the end of the last game. The teams formerly playing were clearing their tables as Fuu stepped up, placing herself between the last two tables and holding a piece of paper in her hands. 

“Teams six and fourteen here, eleven and fifteen there. This is it, everyone.” 

“Good luck!” Aqua said to Ven as she and Kairi stepped forward to the second table and Terra led Ven off to the other. 

“You too!” Ven answered before elbowing Terra. “You ready?” Roxas grinned, glad that the party had, if nothing else, been a good way to get Ven to spend time with his friends. Axel laughed as he watched Roxas’ brother and Terra setting up their side of the table. 

“You know, I bet you and Ven on the same team is a little intimidating,” he teased the small blonde at his side. “Like those creepy twins in that horror movie. Scare your opponents.” Roxas laughed, rubbing the back of his head. 

“I’m not gonna say we did that for a long time after we saw that, but...I can’t say we didn’t, either,” Roxas chuckled, quieting when Aqua and Kairi’s game started off behind them. Aqua kicked off their match by sinking a perfect shot into the very first cup in the formation, and as their opponents catcalled and took their own shot, Ventus and Terra’s rivals began their game. The sounds from the crowd enhanced the excitement; roaring, cheering, and playful joking filled the cool night air as the two games went on until there were only a few scattered cups left on either table. Terra had just thrown his shot wide, and Riku hissed softly from nearby as he watched the miss, while Sora cheered Kairi as her shot had rolled around the rim of a cup before falling inside. After watching Aqua mechanically sink shot after shot, Roxas had focused the majority of his attention of his brother’s match, feeling that it was a less certain win. It was definitely close, with Ven and Terra both struggling to get the upper hand on their opponents, a large guy and a petite girl who looked like siblings. The guy yelled encouragingly as the tiny girl daintily tossed her ball and it fell neatly into the second to last cup in front of Terra and Ventus. The large brunette downed the beer quickly with a grimace and gave the ball to Ven, who looked at it hopelessly. Then he scowled, straightened up, and lobbed it..missing entirely, the ball bounced off the table before being caught by their male opponent, who quickly took aim and sank the last shot. Roxas groaned loudly alongside several members of the crowd as Ven hung his head, but Terra just slugged his shoulder gently. 

“Hey, you did great, man. Too bad they edged us out at the end,” he said kindly, and Ventus perked up at the words. 

“Yeah, well, you crushed it. Lets go see if Aqua and Kairi can take it home,” he returned, and the pair drifted to join the rest of the group who were all watching Kairi anxiously. There was only one cup left on each side of the table, and Kairi was looking worried as she prepared to throw the ball. Suddenly Aqua stepped forward, placing a calming hand on Kairi’s shoulder as the two locked eyes. The red-haired girl nodded, the apprehension in her eyes transforming into fierce determination, and she tossed the ball right in the last cup. Everyone cheered, but the excitement was short-lived, as the girls were ushered to the table Ventus and Terra had vacated to play against their former opponents. 

“This is it, yo!” the male of the pair said excitedly, while the tiny girl giggled. Roxas saw Ventus approach Aqua to say something he couldn’t hear to her, while Sora was rubbing Kairi’s shoulders like a boxing coach with their fighter in the ring. Axel looked like he was sizing the girls up, a calculating look on his face as he moved his gaze to the other team next, and Roxas remembered the winners would face Axel and Demyx. Everyone stepped back as Fuu stepped forward with a coin, asking the smaller girl to call it. The coin toss went to Kairi and Aqua, and the game began. 

It went shot by shot, point for point, without a miss from either side for a long time. When they were down to the last three cups on either side, Kairi was the first to break the streak, and a loud groan poured from the crowd at the same time cheers could be heard. The girl made her shot, though, as did Aqua behind her, but then the larger male aimed wide and missed their point. Kairi narrowly made hers, with the ball rolling around the rim before finally falling inside, and their opponents again missed a cup before Aqua stepped up with just a single cup opposite her. The crowd went wild when the ball hit home easily. 

“What? Man, not cool,” said the man at their loss, while the tiny girl shrugged and congratulated Aqua and Kairi. 

“Oh Aaaxel,” Kairi sang out. “We’re ready for you.” Axel rolled his eyes and grabbed the back of Demyx’s shirt collar, tugging him away from Zexion, who he’d been talking animatedly with. Once behind the table, Demyx’s natural swagger came out, and he started teasing the girls playfully while they reset the table. Fuu stepped up again with her coin, but Axel waved her away. 

“No need, Fuu...ladies first.” He gestured towards the girls opposite to throw first, but with a cocky smile. Aqua wasted no time taking the advantage, grabbing a ball and throwing it into a cup smoothly with a laugh. 

“If you insist,” she called, starting a very competitive and tense game. Axel, like Aqua, nailed every shot perfectly, whereas Demyx was like Kairi, playing a little more loosely. Ven approached Roxas with a beer from a cooler off to the side, and the two watched in silence while the people gathered roared around them. Demyx missed his second shot while Kairi had only failed one, so the girls were ahead already when Aqua stepped up yet again to throw a beautiful shot into their second to last cup. Axel growled as he tossed back the beer, but Demyx, who was more than a little drunk by this point, cheered along with everyone else. Axel stepped up, knocking the girls down to two cups, and then Kairi was up. 

“You know, Axe,” she said, lining up her shot before launching the ball into their last cup. “I’ve always liked taking munny from you.” Everyone around them exploded into sound, most cheering the victors while some teased the losers. Demyx skipped back to Zexion’s side immediately, but Axel tousled Kairi’s hair before heading to distribute their munny as the crowd broke apart, some heading inside and others leaving the party. It was extremely late, Roxas realized, as his group reformed with the same thought in mind. 

“I think that’s my cue,” said Aqua, still laughing about something Axel had said while handing over the munny. “I’m beat, and it’s late.” 

“I’ll walk you back,” Terra offered, as Riku nodded and stepped over as well. Roxas looked at Ven pleadingly, wordlessly displaying his desire to stay, and the older blonde sighed. 

“I guess we’re staying,” he said with a wistful look towards the blue-haired girl. 

“Good because I’m ready for some SHOTS!” Kairi announced before marching towards the kitchen. Sora went to follow her, but Riku grabbed his shirtsleeve. 

“Hey, let me give you my number before you go,” he said, quickly typing it into the phone Sora offered. Terra turned to Ven at that with the same idea in mind, and as they exchanged numbers, Aqua glanced over to her slate-haired friend. 

“Coming, Zex?” Roxas saw Zexion look at Demyx out of the corner of his eye before answering her. 

“No, I think I’ll stay for a little longer. Don’t worry, Aqua, I’ll get home safe.” She nodded, and as Riku and Terra stepped closer again, she waved. 

“It was so nice to meet you all,” she said, seeming to look particularly hard at Ventus when she spoke.”Thanks for inviting us, Roxas.” 

“You’re always welcome back anytime,” Axel replied smoothly as Roxas beamed, and the three headed off down the street towards the apartments. “I really did like them,” Axel turned to Roxas after they were out of earshot. “Although next time, don’t pair my sister up with the ringer.” Roxas shoved him playfully as they all began to head towards the house, which appeared to be clearing out a little as well. Once in the still busy kitchen where Kairi was busily lining up shotglasses for their group of friends, Roxas remembered the altercation with Marluxia. 

“Will you make me a drink?” he muttered to Axel, handing over his cup. “I’m gonna go make sure our spot’s clear.” Axel nodded in understanding before Roxas slipped through the people drinking and talking and towards the living room. In there, the party’s inevitable wind-down was more apparent, as the dance floor had cleared to be a place for small groups of people to chat and drink, and there was only one guy with a partially unbuttoned dress shirt and ashy blonde hair that curled at the ends sitting in the smoker’s corner. Roxas was about to duck back into the kitchen when the male in the corner spoke to him. 

“My name is Joshua,” he said, drawing Roxas’ attention unwillingly. As the smaller blonde looked back at him, Joshua smiled lazily, holding out the blunt towards Roxas, and the blonde took a dragging step forward to receive it automatically. 

“Thanks, bro, but I was just looking to see if-“ Roxas began, but ended up just taking his hit as Joshua spoke over him, silencing his excuse for leaving. 

“Are we just skipping past the part where you tell me your name?” the man on the couch asked arrogantly, smug smile still in place. 

“It’s Roxas,” the blonde said as he handed back the weed and tried to leave for the kitchen, but Joshua stopped him again. 

“Roxas, Roxas,” Joshua repeated faintly, almost laughing. “Why is it that every time I’ve seen you tonight, you’ve looked like you’re searching for someone?” Roxas was baffled; he’d never seen this guy before he walked into the room, he was certain of that. 

“What?” he managed, giving the blonde a bewildered look and receiving a sigh of mock disappointment. 

“You don’t look around much, do you?” Joshua asked with a trace of amusement. “I’ve seen you run in and out a few times tonight, always looking around before you go. Have you still not found them yet?” Roxas shook his head, opening his mouth to explain, when he felt a presence at his back and spun around to see Axel, tensed like a lion about to spring. 

“Another friend of yours, Roxas?” he asked in a clipped voice, shooting daggers with his eyes at Joshua, who didn’t look put off in the slightest that the intimidating redhead was bristling at him 

“Oh relax, Red, I’m here with Neku,” he drawled amusedly, offering the blunt to Axel. He looked like he’d rather have hit it out of the man’s hand, but reluctantly took it from Joshua instead. As he took his hit, Joshua turned back to Roxas. 

“I see you did. I truly hope you can stop looking soon,” he said archly, standing up and brushing off his shirt. Then he turned a piercing stare onto Axel, who looked back challengingly. “You should stick around, so he doesn’t end up searching forever.” Then he slipped away quietly towards the DJ Roxas had seen earlier, who was now standing in the doorway with a girl in a skimpy outfit holding a stuffed cat. The three of them disappeared without so much as a backward glance, and Roxas turned in confusion to Axel, who’s face wore an expression caught somewhere between irritation and panic. By that time, though, the rest of their diminished group was making their way into the room. 

“Was that Joshua?” Demyx asked as he pulled Zexion down onto the couch with him when he sat. 

“That’s what he said,” Roxas answered skeptically, finally sitting down and taking the blunt from Axel when the redhead dropped down onto the spot next to him. Demyx shook his head with a smile. 

“I’m pretty sure the guy’s omniscient; he always says the trippiest, most insightful things,” Demyx laughed, while Ven sat on Roxas’ other side and Sora and Kairi opted to share one of the chairs. Ven took the blunt gratefully from his brother when it was offered, but seemed to be pouting, and the group fell into an easy silence as they smoked and watched the people around them begin to clear out now that the music had shut down. After they’d heard nothing but the music playing from the stereo for a while, Axel got up to check the house and lock up. Demyx was singing softly, threading his fingers through Zexion’s hair, and Kairi had fallen asleep sprawled across Sora’s lap. Ven passed the bong over to Zexion and then leaned back with his hands behind his head and stared off into space. 

“I didn’t even get her number,” he groaned softly to himself, closing his eyes and furrowing his brow. “How lame is that?” Roxas snorted, poking Ven in the ribs. 

“You know, she IS my friend. I can give it to you right now.” 

“It isn’t the SAME “ he lamented dramatically before sighing and peeking one eye open at his brother. “I’ll still take it, though.” Roxas, Sora, and Demyx all chuckled, but Zexion locked eyes with Ventus. 

“She did seem to get along with you very quickly,” he said softly, giving the small blonde a smile, which he returned. 

“Thanks, man,” he said as he copied the number from Roxas’ phone. “She’s just so...wow,” he sighed dreamily, handing Roxas back his phone and immediately beginning to type on his own. Axel returned then, lugging a bunch of blankets and pillows with him. 

“Well, everything’s a disaster, but that was a pretty epic party. Who’s crashing here? Everyone?” Everyone nodded quietly except Zexion, who turned to look at Demyx. 

“We’re gonna get out of here,” Demyx said with a wink thrown at Axel before he rose, tugging Zexion to his feet with him. “See you guys later!” Zexion waved before he was dragged out of the room by a giggling Demyx, and the two disappeared quickly before a door slammed shut. Roxas shook his head with a smile; he would never in a million years have thought those two would have connected like they had. Axel had been laying a bunch of blankets out over the floor to the side of the couches; throwing a few pillows there, he looked at Sora. 

“You got her, or do you want me to?” he whispered, nodding at Kairi, but Sora shook his head. In a feat of strength Roxas hadn’t been aware the drunk brunette possessed, Sora gathered his sleeping girlfriend up into his arms and stood, lifting her with him. He carried her to the makeshift bed Axel had made them and set her down, then flopped down beside her after fistbumping Axel appreciatively. Next, Axel tossed a pillow and blanket at Ven, nailing him as the blonde had been glued to his phone with a smile plastered over his face. Then Axel locked eyes with Roxas, nodding his head towards the couch Demyx and Zexion had vacated. He threw a pillow at either end, handing Roxas a blanket as he approached and keeping the last one for himself. Roxas sat and waited for the redhead as he flicked off the lights, leaving the room in near-absolute darkness before he joined the smaller man. Roxas scooped up the bong from the table where Zexion had left it, taking a final hit before offering it to Axel, who did the same. Before Roxas could turn and lay down on the pillow, Axel caught his hand, leaning forward to whisper in his ear. 

“You and I need to have a talk tomorrow,” he purred before leaving a gentle kiss on Roxas’ cheek and leaning back onto his own pillow. Roxas was stunned, lifting fingertips to brush the spot on his cheek that still tingled faintly. “Goodnight, Roxy,” Axel said softly as he rolled to his side and seemed to start nodding off. 

“Night Axe,” Roxas murmured back, laying down as well. When he closed his eyes, however, his alcohol consumption made itself apparent; the world revolved sickeningly around him and he groaned, knowing that if he stood, he would be sick. He waited with gritted teeth until his head settled, and by the time it had, the room was filled with nothing but the sounds of heavy, even breathing. He lay there, unwilling to close his eyes, and thought about the things Joshua had said, and Axel’s whispered promise.


	24. Chapter Twenty-Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, already made someone unsubscribe lol. Hope some of y’all are enjoying this at least...although things are about to get a whole lot darker ;)

Roxas woke up to the sound of voices. As if he was still dreaming, they came floating through the darkness, and it took several seconds for Roxas’ eyes to adjust and determine they were coming from the same place as the sliver of light from beyond the kitchen, seemingly through the doorway. 

“What do you mean, Luxord?” a familiar voice snarled. That one belonged to Axel, and he sounded furious. “How the fuck could Xehanort even know he existed, let alone that HE wrote the thing?” Roxas could hear the normally soothing baritone of the pierced blonde, but it was marred by anxiety, shame, and...fear? 

“I was drunk, and boasting, you know how it is,” the man began plaintively, but was stopped by a loud thud that sounded like a fist slamming into something. 

“Why the fuck did you bring him up, though?” Axel’s voice was growing louder with every word. His harsh whisper echoed clearly through the room Roxas was eavesdropping from. “That’s what I don’t understand. And since when has Xehanort been your drinking buddy? Moving up in the world, I see.” By the last few words, the anger in the redhead’s words had hardened to icy fury. Roxas could hear the fear become more prominent from Luxord’s next words, and Roxas distantly wondered what Axel must look like to put that note into the normally stoic man. 

“No, no, it wasn’t like that, Axel,” he whispered back defensively. “Me and the boys were playing dice while the place was closing up, someone said they wanted to find out where to get their hands on a copy, since the source has been so closely guarded. I mentioned I knew not only the major supplier, but the writer himself. One of them must have gone to Xehanort.” Another thud, this one followed by a muffled grunt, and Roxas surmised that Axel’s next blow had been aimed at the man speaking. “I swear on anything, Axel, I didn’t take my knowledge to him. I had no idea he would hear. I don’t even know for certain how he would have heard about it, but I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.” The sound of the front door slamming back on its hinges and into the wall suddenly rang through the house like a gunshot, and Roxas nearly jumped out of his skin at the sound. 

“Get the fuck out of my house. You can come back to talk to him in the morning; you’re not welcome to stay,” an angry hiss dismissed the man, and Roxas heard the door click shut a few seconds later at a much lower volume. Then soft footsteps padded down the hallway towards the doorway, and Roxas, who didn’t want to get busted for eavesdropping but also desperately wanted to talk to the redhead, sat up as if just beginning to wake up. 

“Oh, did I wake you, sweetheart? I’m sorry about that,” came Axel’s low, soft whisper, which was suddenly followed by the man sliding onto the couch beside him. Roxas noticed Axel was giving him cautious space which, more than anything else so far, had his anxiety skyrocketing. 

“What’s going on?” Roxas asked softly, trying to look into the taller man’s face despite the minimal lighting. Axel sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. 

“Luxord,” he hissed harshly, “has brought up your project to some people who...want to set up a meeting with you. Unfortunately, they’re not the kind of people you can turn down an invitation like this from.” Roxas felt himself grow cold. 

“I’m pretty sure I can say ‘no’ to whoever I want,” he said with more strength than he felt, and Axel let out a hollow chuckle. 

“Not in this case, Rox. If you turn down these people, you’ll find yourself meeting them anyways, just in MUCH less favorable conditions. This way you could at least potentially get something out of their deal. And this way, I can go with you, to keep an eye on things. You’re not stepping foot near any of these people without me next to you, do you understand?” The last part came out desperately, and even with no light, Roxas could see that the redhead’s face was grave, tight, and worried. 

“Who...ARE these people?” Roxas asked. Axel’s reactions were triggering every warning in his brain, and Roxas was feeling more unsettled about this whole thing as the concern in Axel’s eyes grew. 

“They’re...the people who run Oogie Boogie’s, that Luxord and Reno work for. But they run a whole hell of a lot more than the casino. Let’s just leave it at; these are people who can and will get what they’re after. And right now, they’re looking for you and those little programs.” Axel gave a delicate shudder at his own words, then shook himself, seeming determined to shake off the conversation as well. “Lux will be here in the morning to extend the official invitation to you. Leave it til then.” Suddenly Roxas felt warm hands on him, gently shifting him until his back was to the redhead. He opened his mouth to protest, but then those hands were rubbing his shoulders and he was brought back to the first night he had stayed overnight there, when he had drunkenly given the redhead a massage. Sighing into the touch, Roxas let the hands pull him from the dark thoughts and was just starting to get drowsy again when Axel’s hands stilled, then abruptly yanked him into a tight embrace against the other man’s chest. “I won’t let anyone hurt you,” Axel said with conviction, his whispered declaration sounding as sure as the sun would rise. Roxas let his head fall back onto Axel’s shoulder. 

“I know,” he responded simply, and the trust in his words made Axel’s hold tighten reflexively before he released the smaller man and gently began to scoot away so he could stand. 

“Please stay,” he pleaded, catching the hem of the redhead’s shirt before he could rise. Axel looked at him, hesitant, but still made to move. 

“I’m just gonna go have a cig, Roxy,” he murmured, but Roxas didn’t let go. 

“You guys smoke inside sometimes. Please, Axe.” He knew he sounded pitiful, but he didn’t want to be alone, half drunk, in the middle of the night, thinking about what these people would want from him. Axel sighed, looking around at the other bodies strewn around the room sleeping peacefully, and pulled his pack out of his pocket. Roxas slumped forward, laying his head in Axel’s lap and curling up around him, and sighed, “Thank you.” Axel petted his hair absently with his free hand, staring off into the darkness as he took a drag from the cigarette and exhaled the smoke in a quiet huff. The soothing feeling of fingers tracking softly through his spiky blonde locks was lulling him back to sleep, and he spoke as if he were in a dream already. “I’m not scared,” he mumbled, eyes closed and voice heavy. “What’s the worst they could do?” He was asleep so quickly he never knew if Axel had answered his rhetorical question.


	25. Chapter Twenty-Five

Reno was about ready to kick someone’s teeth in. His foul mood had carried over from the night before, when he received orders to get his nephew’s little boyfriend in for a meeting immediately. He’d just gotten them off Axel; he knew he was gonna hear it for saying the two were just making out now that it had been made public that the little blonde was the one they were searching for. Reno had sent Luxord to bring him, hoping the kid would be more amicable if the invitation came from a friend, but now there was ANOTHER snag; Luxord had texted to say that there would be a delay, as Axel had kicked him out of the house upon learning they were asking for his companion. Reno couldn’t remember his name...something with an ‘R’ that was unusual was all his tired brain could recall. He sighed, slamming the cup of terrible coffee he was holding down onto the desk before him. His office was pretty bare besides the papers strewn across his workspace, which was good in moments like this when he wanted to destroy something. This place was well overdue for a shift in power; the old coot was overstepping, overbearing, and filled with the confidence of someone who can’t lose. Reno had known this for years, but with everything starting to flare up, he was concerned he was running out of time to prepare. Snarling, he grabbed the old dial phone on his desk and began punching in numbers aggressively. 

“Rude, yo. I need you to pull together the Turks we know will follow my orders. Yep. Mmhmm. Call in Lightning, too, yo, I’ll talk to him. Yeah. In my office within the hour, yo.” He hung up on his long-time partner without another word, feeling too pressed for time to joke around like he normally would. That taken care of, he started call other contacts he knew he would need support from. A power move like this wouldn’t come easily or cheaply. Or without casually. He needed to start figuring out what Xehanort had been keeping from him, too. Especially after sending his own men out without conferring with Reno...he was sure there was more the man was hiding from even his head of security. Things needed to start moving quickly now. The idea of what Xehanort planned to do if Axel’s little friend didn’t comply immediately left a bad taste in his mouth, and he wished for his own magic little app; he knew his cell was bugged by the man, and he couldn’t just call Axel up and warn him. Things might go worse if the blonde went missing prematurely, anyway. Reno’s fist lashed out, sending his cup flying to smash against a wall. He felt helpless to prevent the kid from entering here, and only hoped he could get his shit together fast enough to help him leave before things moved beyond his control. Or before he was taken out of the equation altogether.


	26. Chapter Twenty-Six

The sunlight falling through the blinds woke him up, and it took him a moment to remember where he was and why he was there. Rubbing his hand through his blonde spikes of hair, he sat up and looked around. His brother was gone, as was Axel. That was odd...after last night’s drinking, he hadn’t really expect anyone to be up before noon, himself included. He looked for his phone, finding it between the couch cushions, and saw both that it was nine twenty-seven in the morning and that he had missed texts. He laid back again and pulled them up on his phone, seeing something from his brother about not worrying if he woke up and they weren’t there, they just had a friend show up unexpectedly and were out front talking. The next was...from Aqua? He clicked into the texts under the contact he’d saved with the name to see a string of texts dated from the night before. As he read the first, he remembered Roxas offering the number, he remembered sending that first message...but he didn’t remember her replying. 

Monday 2:49 A.M. 

You: hey this is ven . It ws nice to meetyou 

Aqua: hey yourself! Thanks for texting, I forgot to ask you for yours. I was planning to just get it from Terra when he wakes up 

You: oh...Ididnt realize you guys area thing 

You: I should go to bed 

Aqua: no no 

You: ? 

Aqua: you misunderstand. He’s passed out on my couch, he would have gone home but he didn’t feel up to driving. 

Aqua: we aren’t together 

You: I don’t wanna b a homewrecker Aqua, and I liked terra. ill back off, you don’t have to spare me feelings 

Aqua: Ven, I promise 

Aqua: look; 

Aqua sent an image. 

It was a picture, so dark it was hard to make out the large form of Terra, sprawled half hanging off a couch with a sky blue pillow beneath his head and a grey blanket thrown over him. On the floor beside him, Riku was curled up with a pink pillow, his blanket an off-white ball by his feet. Drunk Ven hadn’t stopped there, however, sober Ven began to realize to his horror. 

Monday 2:59 A.M. 

You: and where are you? 

Aqua sent an image. 

This one was a close selfie, Aqua’s face illuminated by the light of the screen on her phone. She was laying on her side in the dark, head resting on a pillow with a blanket pulled up around her shoulders, clearly taking the picture from her bed. The phone’s glow cast a slight blue tint over her and everything else the light touched, and made the gorgeous girl’s eyes shine brilliantly. Her beauty was breathtaking to him, and his past self had felt the same...but with no inhibitions. 

Monday 3:03 A.M. 

You: you’re so fucking beautiful 

You: hmm. kno what that pics missing tho? 

Aqua: ? 

You: me ;) 

Monday 3:06 A.M. 

You: sorry. 

Monday 3:14 A.M. 

You: I really am sorry, that was supposedtobe a joke, not an asshole move. Plz don’t stop talking to me bc of that x( 

Monday 8:02 A.M. 

Aqua: I didn’t mean to stop talking to you, I fell asleep. I’ve got class this morning, and I don’t expect you to see this for quite some time, but if you want to text me, I’ll answer as soon as I’m able. :) 

Ven wished he could reach through time and punch himself from the night before. What was wrong with him. He just blew his chance with the most amazing woman he’d ever met. Embarrassment, fury, and hopelessness warred in him before he heard a small noise nearby; the couple asleep on the floor together had moved, the girl cuddling herself into Roxas’ roommate’s side, and he had pulled her close with a sleepy murmur. That shook him out of his head; he wanted that desperately from the girl on the other end of those texts, and he wasn’t giving up without at least trying to repair the damage. 

Monday 9:39 A.M. 

You: oh my gaia 

You: Aqua. I’m so sorry 

You: I swear I’m not normally like that 

He groaned quietly, knowing that he’d never be able to lay there waiting now, and kicked his blanket off so he could stand. His brief flashes of memory from the inside of the house the night before did not give him a sense of direction to the front of the house, but he remembered the kitchen so he figured he’d start the search for his brother there. He wandered into the room to see Aqua’s friend with the grey blue hair sitting at a chair pulled up to the kitchen island and stopped; hadn’t he gone home with the others? 

“Hey sexy, will waffles do for breakfast? We need to hit the store before I can- oh. Hey Rox,” Demyx straightened up from where he’d been hidden behind the refrigerator door with a slightly embarrassed smile on his face and averted his gaze as he laughed awkwardly. “I thought you were still outside with Axe and Lux.” Zexion had turned when Demyx had announced the other’s presence, and he at least recognized that Roxas wasn’t the one who’d walked in. He threw Ventus a small smile and a nod while Demyx continued. “What was that all about anyway? Axel looked like he was gonna throw Lux through a wall.” He finally looked at the small blonde and realized his mistake. “Oops, my bad, Ven. Um...good morning?” Ventus rolled his eyes as he pulled up a chair next to Zexion and sat down. 

“It’s all good, bro. What’s going on with Roxas?” he asked, looking around as if his brother and the redhead were about to appear at any moment. Demyx looked flustered. 

“I don’t really know. One of our buddies, Luxord, showed up looking for Roxas for some reason, but Axe wouldn’t let him in and they all went out front to talk like, half an hour ago.” Zexion nodded, confirming Demyx’s story, and Ven tilted his head curiously. 

“You don’t know why he would be-“ Suddenly, an explosion of muffled voices sounded from down the hallway off the kitchen, shocking the three of them into silence. There was a brief pause, and then the front door slammed back on its hinges, making Ven jump and earning a little yell from one of the two who were sleeping in the living room. 

“Calm down, Axe, it’s just to talk,” they could hear Roxas mumbling soothingly, before a loud snarl erupted. 

“You don’t understand, Roxas. Even if it’s just to talk, even if we left right now and met them in broad daylight, this isn’t gonna be some nice little chat that we can just- oh fuck.” The pair of them had just entered the kitchen to find Ventus, Demyx, and Zexion staring at them like deer in the headlights. Everyone stood frozen for a second before the previously sleeping couple stumbled into the room. 

“What’s going on?” the brunette asked blearily, looking around for the source of the sound that had woken him up. Ven recovered before anyone else, and drummed his fingers on the island’s counter. 

“Well, Demyx was offering to make waffles, before those two started in with all the noise,” he said in a bored tone, earning him a grateful look from his brother. “Or was it not me you were calling ‘sexy’ when I walked in?” He fluttered his eyelashes at Demyx, who looked flustered as he began spluttering, and that quickly broke the tension in the air. The brunette and Axel’s sister- Kairi, he belatedly recalled, pulled chairs over to the island to join them, and Roxas remained standing but joined them at Zexion’s other side. Axel was clearly still too worked up to be coaxed into a better mood, however. 

“Gonna go take a quick shower,” the man all but growled, and then loped quickly away and up the stairs. Ven watched his brother stare longingly after the redhead and sighed inwardly, wondering what trouble Roxas could have gotten into before ten in the morning. A buzzing in his pocket derailed his train of thought, however, and he frantically dug it out to see if Aqua had replied. 

Monday 9:48 A.M. 

Aqua: it’s okay, Ven. Really. I wasn’t offended, I just passed out. I haven’t been out drinking like that in ages. 

You: did you have a good time at least? 

You: you can tell me the truth, I won’t rat you out to Rox or yalls other friend 

Aqua: Zexion? Is he still with you guys? I haven’t been able to reach him and I was starting to worry 

You: ah...um...yes? We all crashed over at the house 

Aqua: as long as he’s safe lol. And yes, I had a blast :) 

You: you sure you don’t come out that often? You looked pretty pro last night. Congrats, by the way 

Aqua: lol yeah, that’s just residual training from my older brothers. They figured it was an important life skill to teach a little girl 

You: your brothers sound smart ;p 

You: think you’ll do it again? 

Aqua: maybe. I usually prefer more low-key events 

You: oh yeah? Like what? :) 

“Who on earth could you be talking to this early in the morning?” Roxas asked too sweetly, shooting him a knowing look. Ven laughed unashamedly. 

“I drunk-texted Aqua last night after you gave me her number. I’m running damage control right now,” he said, then gave Zexion a somewhat embarrassed grin. “I also accidentally let slip you were over here...I hope that’s not a bad thing.” 

“Not at all,” Zexion answered smoothly. “She probably would have figured it out eventually. My car is still over there.” Demyx turned around with the first two plates of waffles, setting them in front of Zexion and Ven. 

“Besides, she’s probably gonna see me around,” the taller blonde giggled, then paled, sending Zexion a look that was equal parts embarrassed and hopeful. “Well, I mean...I’d like to be around, if that’s something you’d...that...uh,” Demyx blushed and tripped over his own words trying to backpedal, but Zexion rescued him with a small smile. 

“She’s probably going to see him around,” he repeated with a slight teasing note to his words, but Demyx perked up and puffed out his chest with a beaming smile before returning to making everyone breakfast. Ventus had already begun to demolish the waffles before their exchange was through, pulling out his phone again subtly. 

Monday 9:54 A.M. 

Aqua: we usually all hang out at my apartment for our study group. Otherwise, I don’t usually get out much 

You: so you’d have no interest in something like, oh I dunno, coffee with an admirer? 

Aqua: I guess that depends on who the admirer is 

Aqua: I’m not usually one to go on dates with strangers 

You: would you go one one with ME? 

“I think she liked you, you know,” Kairi said as she received her own plate, distracting him from the anxiety caused by the three little dots that meant Aqua was typing. 

“What?” came his stupid-sounding question. He tried to mentally shake himself. “Why do you think that?” The petite redhead smiled knowingly, shoving a huge bite of waffles into her mouth. Her boyfriend took over for her. 

“Dude, she was watching you all night,” he said before digging in to his own plate. Ventus stared at the phone, thinking about that. Roxas walked around to his side, throwing an arm around his shoulders. 

“Told you to stop whining about meeting my friends,” he reminded his brother teasingly. “Speaking of though, I’ve gotta take care of something. Wanna hang out back at my place?” He looked at the couple, who both nodded at him in wordless agreement. “Sora and Kairi can show you where everything is or hang out or whatever.” Ventus groaned internally, then brightened up. Aqua was somewhere on campus. 

“Maybe I’ll actually do what I came here for and check out campus,” he mused, growing more sure of his choice by the second. Roxas gave an almost inaudible sigh of relief; he was sure his brother was glad he’d have something to do. The phone finally buzzed in his hand, and he was into the messages before the vibrations had ceased. 

Monday 9:58 A.M. 

Aqua; I think I could be persuaded. ;) 

Aqua: what did you have in mind? 

You: I’m gonna be on campus checking out the school. Are you gonna get a break from class any time? We could talk about it then. 

“Yeah, I’m totally gonna do that. When are you going?” Roxas looked uncertain, and glanced towards the stairs before he responded. 

“Ehh, I’ll have to talk to Axe for a minute, he’s gonna be my ride.” 

“I’m sure he is,” muttered Demyx to himself at the other counter, and Ventus laughed uproariously before he could stop himself. He coughed, as if his laughter could be covered by that, and pointedly ignored the death glare Roxas was giving him and Demyx while the other three attempted to suppress giggles. It was then that the redhead himself made an appearance down the stairs, towel around his shoulders and seemingly in a better mood. 

“What’s so funny?” he asked lazily, and the entire room except for him and Roxas burst into laughter. 

“I’ll tell you later,” Roxas grumbled, now blushing. “When are we gonna go?” 

“Sooner the better, I suppose,” Axel sighed, walking over to snag a piece of waffle off the plate Demyx had set out for the smaller blonde. “Do we need to do anything else first?” 

“You mean other than R-“ Ventus started with a snicker before a sharp elbow to his ribs cut him off. There was a beat of silence before Demyx and Sora broke down into helpless giggles while Zexion and Kairi struggled to maintain composure. 

“Let’s go. These guys are all idiots,” Roxas huffed, stomping away towards the front door. Axel looked around at them briefly, the laughter fading as everyone realized he was now serious, no trace of laughter OR anger on his features. 

“Someone call for help if we’re gone longer than dinner time. Dem, you’ve got Reno’s number on that emergency sheet I gave you. Call him, and don’t call the cops.” He disappeared after Roxas, leaving the rest of them to look at each other with apprehension. 

“You have no clue what that’s all about?” Ven asked, worry coloring his tone, and Demyx shook his head mutely. Zexion looked mildly horrified as he spoke softly. 

“Is this...normal for them? Roxas really doesn’t seem like the type to be involved in that kind of trouble.” Sora and Kairi exchanged worried glances. 

“Axel used to be,” she admitted quietly, “but we all sorta thought he’d moved away from that.” Unease hung heavy in the air as they finished eating, conversation kept to a minimum, and then the couple said their goodbyes, clearly planning to go home. 

“Oh, hey, let me get your number bro,” Sora said suddenly to Ventus before they left, “so you can let us know when you’re heading back and we can unlock the door.” Ven nodded, exchanging numbers before seeing he had a message waiting from Aqua he must have missed earlier. After they departed, he decided to make his own exit. 

“Thanks for everything you guys, but I think I’m gonna head out, too. Would one of you let me know if they come back here? I’m gonna be on campus for a while, and I’m willing to bet they come back here first anyway.” Demyx nodded, and Zexion typed his number into his phone before forcing a smile. 

“I’m sure everything will be fine,” he said, his natural calm soothing Ventus even though he knew the man had no idea if that would be the case of not. He nodded, though, and fistbumped Demyx before heading out the same direction the couple had left in. He found the front door easily at the end of the tiny hallway and headed out into the bright morning sunlight, reading his messages immediately. 

Monday 10:04 A.M. 

Aqua: I’ll be out at 10:50, and my next class doesn’t start til 11:30 :) 

Monday 10:12 A.M. 

You: where’s your class? I’ll see if I can find you before you’re out lol 

Aqua: I’m in the health sciences building. Room 504, it’s a big lecture hall. 

Aqua: See you then! 

Luckily, campus was visible from where he was standing on the porch, so he set off towards the large tan buildings to see if he could find the blue-haired girl.


	27. Chapter Twenty-Seven

The car ride was quiet this time, save for the sound of the wind whipping by through the open windows as Axel chain smoked and drove them faster than legally allowed towards the casino. Both Roxas and Axel were deeply lost in thought, so the silence wasn’t awkward, just tense. Roxas was replaying the interaction they’d had with Luxord this morning over again in his head. From the second Axel had woken him up as he jumped up to get the door, to Axel physically shoving Luxord’s chest to push him back from the door when he’d tried to enter, to the conversation that the three of them had had following that. Luxord trying to remain calm in the face of Axel’s defensive rage as he told Roxas that his boss wanted to meet with him immediately in regards to the program Roxas had written. Axel’s suggestion that Luxord go fuck himself after Roxas had taken Axel’s words from the night before to heart and agreed to go. Axel’s tight, tense body language for the entirety of their trip so far. The unconfident, self-depreciating part of his brain worried that he was the cause of Axel’s unhappiness, even though logically he knew that it was the situation they were going into. Which...was something that he caused. Yeah, it was still because of him. He sighed, stealing a glance at the redhead beside him. Axel had one hand lazily draped over the top of the steering wheel and the other was ashing his cigarette out the window as he drove with a faraway look in his eyes. Remembering the man’s drunken promise of a conversation, Roxas vaguely wondered what the redhead had planned to talk to him about had Luxord not interrupted their morning. Or if he’d even have remembered it. Roxas was deeply confused about where they stood following the past few days’ events; despite knowing how everything was SUPPOSED to be, he had shared much more intimate moments with Axel than anything that could be construed as friendship would have held, and that was messing with his head. Which didn’t help anything as his mind turned back to wondering what the people they were meeting with wanted from him. He was sure if they just wanted a few copies for themselves, they would have simply had someone buy them and been done. Why go through all the trouble to set up a meeting, or to search for The Programmer in the first place? There was something much more serious they must want, he was sure. The fact that Axel seemed intimidated and almost afraid of these guys was also making him more than slightly nervous. As signs for the casino began to loom in the distance, Roxas noticed Axel’s expression growing stranger and stranger. Where he’d seemed angry or panicked before, his face had grown thoughtful, then anxious, then pained. When it shifted again to a more conflicted, agonizing expression, though, Roxas couldn’t take it in silence any longer. 

“What’s going on, Axe?” he asked softly, voice cracking as he put it to use for the first time since they’d started driving. “Is it about this meeting?” Axel sent him a quick look before returning his eyes to the road. 

“Nah. No point agonizing over it until we’re there. No, I’m trying to decide if I wanna have that conversation I told you about before or after this...meeting,” he said with a shrug,frowning slightly when he spat out the last word. Roxas looked at him blankly. 

“Is it serious?” he asked meekly, forcing a smile and trying to seem like he wasn’t suppressing a skyrocketing anxiety. Axel smirked to himself before pulling out yet another cigarette and lighting it up. 

“I’d say so,” he replied teasingly, then shook his head. “But I think it should wait til later. Everything’s okay, though,” he reassured the blonde after glancing at him again and catching his panicked look. “Don’t worry about it for now, okay? You’ve got more important things to consider. I would...strongly suggest doing what they ask, if it’s at all reasonable. At least try to come to an agreement with them. I don’t...I can’t imagine why they’ve gone to the trouble of searching you out and bringing you in.” His tone was grim, mouth set in a hard line, and Roxas’ mind started back on its troubled loop as Axel pulled them into Oogie’s parking structure. This time he only went up a few levels, parking as close as he could to the elevator, and briefly Roxas wondered if Axel was readying them for a faster getaway. The car was turned off, but the two remained where they were for a long moment before Roxas figured he should start working on his bravado in preparation for what was to come. 

“Come on, Red. Lets go see what these fuckers want.” Axel cracked a smile at that, and lit another cigarette before opening his door and climbing out. Roxas didn’t say anything about his timing, but when he pressed the button for the elevator just a few feet away and still hadn’t put out his barely-begun cigarette, the blonde raised an eyebrow at him. The redhead smiled deviously and nodded towards a sign on the concrete wall that stayed there would be cameras monitoring the elevators. 

“I’d rather our hosts be just as unprepared as we are,” he muttered quietly as a soft ding announced the arrival of the lift. He reached the hand holding his cigarette in as if he were holding the door for Roxas, letting smoke curl into the tiny space before gesturing the blonde forward. By the time Axel himself stepped on, the air was hazy enough that the camera would have a hard time capturing their appearances. Roxas tapped a finger to his temple as he gave Axel an appreciative smile, silently commending his move. The redhead gave a sweeping bow and a flirty wink before straightening up and blowing a huge puff of smoke in the direction of the mounted camera in the corner. Roxas chuckled, then grew quiet as he steeled his nerves and began to gather all the courage he could muster. He wanted to come across as confident and tough, despite knowing he was a tiny blonde with a face that made him look younger than he was. He needed to be The Programmer, aloof and secretive and smart. Someone they wouldn’t try to take advantage of. He drew himself to his full height as the elevator pinged open and followed the redhead in the dauntingly familiar path to the reception desk they’d stopped at last time. An almost robotically professional woman with long black hair smiled vaguely as they approached. 

“Here for a meeting,” Axel said gruffly, and a flash of deja vu threw Roxas for a second. The woman paused for a second, clearly waiting for more information, but upon receiving none, she gave a polite smile. 

“Is there a party name I could search for you by?” she inquired, fingers poised over her keyboard. Axel smirked imperiously. 

“The Programmer,” he said archly, as if she should have known that somehow. The woman’s eyes grew wide and her hands fluttered as she became visibly nervous, and took a step back from her terminal. 

“Oh! Oh, ah, if you gentlemen will please follow me,” she said, struggling to retain her overly professional attitude. She quickly stepped out from behind her desk and led them down a hall with elevators at the front, looking like every other hotel lobby Roxas had ever seen, albeit the most lavish one. She continued on, past rows of doors locked with keycards, all the way to what looked like an emergency exit at the very end. Taking a bright red keycard out of a pocket, she swiped it through the reader on the door and then pushed it open, holding it for the two men. Roxas shadowed Axel as they went through, pausing for the woman to overtake them once the door had slammed shut ominously behind her. The door led to nothing but an elevator, with only one button beside it. The woman called it, and the doors dinged open immediately, so they all piled in and listened to disorientingly bland music as the carriage took them down for what seemed like ages. Once the doors opened, they continued down a long, narrow corridor that was broken periodically by heavy-looking steel doors to arrive at one about midway down, which the woman stopped in front of. “If you’ll kindly wait here, someone will be with you shortly,” she said I’m clipped tones, swiping a black card this time and ushering them into the room. Once the pair had entered, she pulled the door politely closed behind her, and the click of the lock sounded like a gunshot to the anxiety-riddled blonde. He gave Axel an uneasy look, which was returned by the redhead. 

“I didn’t even know this place HAD a downstairs,” Axel murmured quietly. The room they were in was tasteful but bland; it looked like a waiting room, with chairs and coffee tables and generic fake plants around the relatively small room, and they were left there long enough that Roxas eventually took a seat despite his apprehension. Axel paced instead, much the same as he had done when they were waiting for Pete, but Roxas had a strong suspicion they weren’t going to end up in a compromising position after this meeting was over. A sharp clicking sound emanating from the door alerted them both to company, and Roxas jumped to his feet as Axel looked across the room to place himself between Roxas and whoever was about to enter. Through the door came two men who both had silver hair but nearly nothing else in common. One was younger-looking, his hair slicked back from his face to fall nearly to his back, while the other’s spiky, shoulder-length hair fell around his face much less rigidly despite him being the more intimidating figure. 

“Good afternoon, gentlemen,” the older of the two said in a soothing, neutral tenor, then gestured to the surrounding chairs. “Feel free to take a seat.” Axel just crossed his arms and glared, but Roxas took a seat in the chair just to the side of his position, figuring he should at least be civil until he heard what they wanted. The younger man smirked before taking a seat across from Roxas, but the older man remained impassive as he took the chair next to his partner. “My name is Xemnas, and this is Ansem. We’re here on behalf of Xehanort, the man who owns and operates this casino. Have you heard of him?” His question sounded mild, but there was an implication behind the words that his answer should be yes. 

“Vaguely,” Roxas said dismissively, waving a hand. Xemnas nodded, continuing on. 

“Our organization has taken notice, along with half the city, of the program you’ve developed. The application to be loaded onto cell phones. Just about everyone we’ve heard from has been desperate to get their hands on a copy, and after closer look, we were impressed.” Xemnas’s face remained impassive, voice neutral, giving nothing away, but his companion obviously wasn’t as practiced. When he spoke, his tone was at least somewhat roused. 

“We had a difficult time locating you. I think we wouldn’t have been as quick to find you had you released more product, but since your video circulated and everyone has been clamoring for a piece, the limited number of people with a copy led a trail right to your distributor.” He looked smug when he said that, making Roxas uneasy about Demyx’s involvement, but then the first man took over again. 

“That’s where we’d like to come in. We have resources at our disposal to mass-produce your product, and are capable of reaching a much wider base than some low-level weed dealer,” he sneered when he referred again to Demyx, and Axel bristled at his tone, but Roxas kept his face, at least, composed. 

“And you’re here to negotiate my cut if I agree to license it to you?” he asked in a bored voice, looking at his nails as he spoke as if the conversation were completely uninteresting to him. A malicious smile bloomed on Ansem’s face, and Xemnas looked amused when he answered. 

“Not exactly.” Ansem barked out a brief, harsh laugh before he added on. 

“He’s more interested in licensing YOU.” At that, Axel let out a soft growl and Roxas had to fight hard to keep his expression in check, and then Xemnas began to clarify. 

“We believe you are being undervalued. Mass production of your app would simply be the first, most basic step. Xehanort would like to offer you permanent accommodations here, where you would be able to work with the aid of our computer division under you. We would like to see you produce much more than just the one program. Most of it would be used strictly for our organization, but he has some ideas for more commercial products as well. We believe this could be the start of a wonderful venture.” Roxas has frozen, but Axel scoffed at the man. 

“‘Permanent accommodations’?” Axel snarled the phrase back at the men. “You want to keep him here?” Xemnas nodded with a serene smile, but it was Ansem who actually answered. 

“Of course. His safety would be of the utmost importance, and here we would be able to have him under protection around the clock.” Axel’s hands clenched into fists at his sides. 

“Over my dead body,” he hissed, and Roxas reached out a hand to place it placatingly on the redhead’s tensed arm. 

“Sorry, but I’m a student. I’ve got friends and family nearby. I’m not interested in relocating at the moment, or taking on new projects for that matter. Feel free to get in contact with me if you have a different offer. I’ll leave my number; no need to waste everyone’s time in the future.” Ansem’s expression twisted into a scowl, but Xemnas remained unperturbed. 

“Is there nothing we could add to make you reconsider your position?” he asked smoothly, steepling his fingers in front of him. “I think we can all agree it would be more prudent to come to a resolution while we’re all gathered here.” Roxas was shaking his head politely before the man finished speaking. 

“I’m more than willing to work out a licensing agreement, but I’m not interested in anything further. Unless you have terms to offer within those boundaries,” he stood, looking imperiously at the still-seated pair, “then I think we’re ready to leave.” The look in Xemnas’ eyes was calculated fury, but his expression never wavered from his smile. 

“As you wish. It was so interesting to meet you. I look forward to the next time.” The two of them got to their feet, Ansem striding to the door to knock on it twice, while Xemnas held out a hand for them to shake. Axel crossed his arms over his chest with a glare, but Roxas took the offered hand and shook it once before pulling away. The door opened, and the woman from before stood there with an expectant smile. Ansem gestured towards her. 

“You’ll be led back to the lobby. Keep in touch.” His parting words sounded like a threat, but were too conventional to be taken as such. Without waiting around another second, Roxas turned and swept out of the room as quickly as he could without looking like he was running, Axel at his heels. The woman seemed to realize their impatience, for her pace was slightly quicker leaving as it had been when they entered. Once they’d endured the elevator ride and the walk into the main area of the lobby, the woman turned with a cheery smile. 

“I hope you gentlemen enjoyed your visit, and-“ 

“Sure sure, thanks,” Axel cut her off as he breezed past, and the pair of them beat a hasty retreat back to the car. They didn’t slow down as they jumped in the car, Axel spinning out as he floored it and got them onto public streets within seconds. It wasn’t until he had them barreling down the highway towards the ferry that the two breathed normally again, Roxas turning towards Axel as he fumbled to light a cigarette with the wind whipping by. 

“Well, that was...interesting,” Roxas said, still incredulous over the whole thing. The dude wanted him to be a glorified pet to use him as a developer. There was no way in hell. “Sorry I couldn’t take your advice.” Axel threw him a look, clearly not amused by his flippancy. 

“There’s no way in hell,” he muttered mostly to himself, echoing Roxas’ thoughts. “I’ve gotta get ahold of Reno. Maybe he’d know what’s up with this whole thing.” Roxas shook his head. 

“If he’d known, wouldn’t he have said something?” Roxas asked incredulously. They were family! Of course Reno would have warned Axel, right? Axel gave a snort. 

“He’s told me before that he thinks they’ve got his phone bugged. He’d have to talk in person.” His tone was bitter, as if the subject was a past sore spot. It was impossible not to wonder what growing up with someone in Reno’s profession would be like for a kid. A sigh escaped his lips as he leaned his forehead on the cool glass of the window and watched the road blur by. “Rox?” Axel said hesitantly, trying to draw the blonde’s attention back. 

“Mm?” came his murmur showing he was listening. He turned his head a little in time to see a fleeting grin flash across his face. 

“You’re braver than even I gave you credit for, shortie. Handled that a lot better than I would have, that’s for sure, and,” he paused, struggling for the right words, “without making this awkward, I’m...really proud of you, you know?” The unexpected praise filled Roxas with a warm, bright glow of happiness, and it took him a minute to come up with something to say in return. 

“Thanks, Axe, that...really means a lot.” Axel nodded briefly, then turned on the car’s stereo, and the two let the music replace conversation for the rest of the drive home.


	28. Chapter Twenty-Eight

Monday 3:05 P.M. 

Roommate: dude we gotta talk 

Roommate: also, we’re turning onto Main from the highway. don’t worry about my earlier request 

Demyx checked his phone only because of the ominous note Axel had left on, but seeing that they were okay, he didn’t even bother unlocking it before throwing it comically over his shoulder onto the couch behind him and diving back into what he was doing. Specifically, making out with the gorgeous man he’d been infatuated with since Larxene had showed them that stupid picture. How his drunken self had talked him into bed, he couldn’t remember, but he wasn’t letting Zexion slip away now that he had. After breakfast and everyone splitting off to do their separate things, he had found himself alone with the slate-haired male, and though he’d TRIED to keep his hands to himself and get to know the guy, he hadn’t been doing too great a job at that. They’d ended up fooling around in the kitchen for a little before they’d finally torn themselves apart and ventured to the way more comfortable living room. There, Demyx had started up a bowl, and was pleasantly surprised when Zexion joined in. At his look of slight incredulousness, the shorter man gave him a roll of his eyes and informed him he was treating the day as a holiday, since it would be his first time to skip classes to play hooky, too. After a few hits, Demyx had offered up another way to celebrate his ‘holiday’, and they’d been working their way towards it when he’d heard his phone go off. 

“Mm, so we have two choices,” he gasped when he next came up for air, looking down at the disheveled man beneath him. Zexion’s lips were still parted, reddened from their kissing, and he was looking up at the blonde with those gorgeous, deep aqua eyes practically begging him for more and who the hell was he to deny the unspoken request. He descended upon him, lips moving fervently against the other’s as he continued exploring Zexion’s mouth with his tongue, tasting and teasing and memorizing. It was another minute or two before Zexion broke the kiss, panting softly. 

“Two choices?” he breathlessly reminded the blonde, who nuzzled against his neck as he answered. 

“Axel and Roxas are about to be back, so we can sit up and chill until they get here...” he trailed off for a second to ghost his lips along Zexion’s jaw and down his neck before grazing his teeth across the sensitive skin where his pulse beat at the junction of his shoulder and throat. The delicate shudder that went through the man below him filled him with pride and desperate anticipation. “Or we can head up to my room and you can put me back to work. As much as I don’t wanna get off you, we have a very strict clothes-on-downstairs policy, and I’m about to enforce a very strict clothes-off-Zexion policy if we keep going.” Half-lidded eyes that outclassed the sea Demyx loved gazed up at him as Zexion gave him a little smirk. 

“Everything was alright?” he clarified, voice rougher than usual which only added fuel to the fire blazing inside Demyx. 

“I got the official call to stand down,” he reported, tracing a finger lazily down Zexion’s chest and surprisingly toned stomach. Reaching the hem of his shirt, Demyx slipped his hand under the fabric and let his fingertips dance over the soft, smooth skin beneath them. Zexion squirmed, bringing a hand around to the back of Demyx’s neck and tugging the blonde down for another kiss. 

“Then let’s move before we can trouble your housemate,” he murmured after another liplocked moment. Demyx let a triumphant smirk overtake his face as he pulled the man up with him while he stood, tugging his shorter companion against his chest once he had his feet under him and molding their lips together yet again in a much more insistent kiss. Tongues battling for dominance, Demyx walked them backward without separating, one hand on the blue-haired man’s hip to guide him as they walked and the other tangled in his hair and cradled his head to keep them glued to each other. He was pleased to feel Zexion grab two fistfuls of his shirt, pushing lightly as they went, and when they hit the stairs it was all he could do to take them slowly enough that he didn’t end up tripping and pulling them both down. It was as if the higher up they went, the more control Zexion took and the more urgent he was; when he bit the blonde’s lower lip, tugging lightly before releasing only to rub it soothingly with his tongue, Demyx groaned weakly as it sent a shiver through him. When the man’s mouth abandoned his altogether to nibble and suck at the sensitive skin of his neck, Demyx whimpered and started to let Zexion’s gentle shoves maneuver him down the hall rather than tugging the man along. Before they’d made it past Axel’s door, Zexion had used his grip on Demyx’s shirt to tug it off over the blonde’s head, with his own landing on the floor just a few feet behind it. Demyx kicked off his shoes somewhere around there, but Zexion was more focused on the taller man’s jeans, deftly unbuttoning them before slipping his hand beneath boxers to grab Demyx’s hip possessively with an impatient little snarl. 

“Awh, Zexy, getting worked up?” he teased, then let out a faint hiss when he got a particularly hard nip in answer. Zexion was immediately licking and sucking on the spot on the side of his throat, soothing the sting, teasing...definitely leaving a hickey. He felt a huge grin slip onto his face because it had been a long time since he’d had someone give him a hickey and Zexion was just so HOT when he got all riled up, Demyx had learned that last night after teasing him for just a little too long, but oh how much fun teasing Zexion was, and oh how awesome the consequences had been. As if reading his mind, Zexion pinned him to the door to his room, letting Demyx fumble for the knob to let them in so he could lean forward to whisper in his ear. 

“If we’re about to have company, there’s not nearly enough time for me to let you torment me like you did last night. You’ve given me several signals, but just to confirm; do you think you’d be okay if I were a little rough with you?” Demyx chuckled as he managed to let them in, letting Zexion push him towards the bed as he began working open the man’s pants. 

“Oh, I think I’d be more than ‘okay’,” the blonde purred just before he felt the backs of his legs hit his bed. Zexion’s eyes grew predatory, and it shot a bolt of heat through the blonde. 

“Good,” Zexion murmured before he pushed Demyx back onto the bed and straddled his waist. “I was hoping you’d say that.”


	29. Chapter Twenty-Nine

Roxas was glad to be pulling up in front of Axel’s house. There, they could finally sit down and start to relax; Demyx would be there, too, and hopefully his cheerful, carefree demeanor could scrub the dirty feeling their meeting had given Roxas from his mind. He followed Axel into the living room, dropping down on the couch with a sigh while Axel turned on the TV and grabbed a controller. On his way to the couch as well, he snagged the blanket he’d been sleeping with, bringing it to drape over both of them as he settled himself into the space next to Roxas, so close that their legs were pressed together from hip to knee. Demyx was nowhere to be found, and Roxas assumed he’d probably left to go take Zexion back. The redhead seemed to have been planning for them to cuddle and chill, because although he still hadn’t said anything, he nodded his head towards the bong in wordless direction for Roxas to load it as he skimmed through Netflix for something to watch. That was more than fine with the blonde; he’d be open to just about anything that would take his mind off of today’s events, and further blurring the lines of their ‘friendship’ seemed to be more of a benefit than deterrent at the present. Axel appeared to feel the same, because once the bong was loaded and a suitably interesting but not intense show was turned on, he surprised Roxas by sliding away towards an end of the couch and leaning back against the armrest with one leg stretched out along the seat. Before Roxas could really process his absence, Axel reached forward, wrapped his arms around the blonde’s waist, and pulled him into the curve of his legs with Roxas’ back leaned up against his chest. Satisfied, he stretched around the smaller man to grab the blanket and retuck them, then for the bong so he could press it into Roxas’ hands. The two were just getting properly snuggled together and starting to settle in when a phone went off. Both men reached for their devices, then looked at each other in confusion for a second before Roxas stretched to the other side of the couch to retrieve another device that had been lost in the folds of a discarded hoodie. 

“Is that...Demyx’s? What’s it doing here?” Roxas asked blankly. Demyx sold drugs, for Gaia’s sake; he never left his phone laying around. Axel’s forehead wrinkled in concern, and he took it from Roxas absently. 

“That’d explain why he never responded to my messages,” the redhead muttered to himself, extracting his leg from behind Roxas and getting to his feet. “Maybe he’s taking a nap, though why he’d leave his phone down here I don’t know. I’ll be right back.” He quickly disappeared before his footsteps sounded on the staircase. It was nothing, Demyx just forgot his phone. He knew Demyx was fine, but the fact that he’d been brought up by those people at Oogie’s made Roxas really anxious now. He stared at the TV but took nothing in as he focused on listening for any sounds from upstairs over the banter of the people on screen. The silence only lasted a few seconds before hurried footsteps sounded on the stairs and Axel was strolling back into the room, his stance casual aside from being a little faster than usual. Roxas raised an eyebrow questioningly, and Axel smirked widely as he slid back into his place behind Roxas, tugging the blonde into his arms suddenly as he spoke into his ear, “Either Demyx was wearing more clothes than usual and melted into a puddle upstairs, or Zexion’s still here.” The implications behind Axel’s words and the position he was now in combined to send a blush creeping across his cheeks. 

“Um, yeah, I mean that’s...good for them,” Roxas stammered out, sincere despite how uncomfortable he suddenly felt. He’d never been reminded quite as forcefully how badly he wanted the redhead who was wrapped around him as he did then, when he was held firmly in the man’s lap from behind while Axel’s breath warmed his cheek and tickled his ear and casually mentioned people having sex nearby. Especially with Axel now following his no-hooking-up rule, this teasing seemed like cruel torture to the smaller blonde who wanted what his friends upstairs were starting. Wanted it for real, not this game that he and Axel played. Roxas has frozen when Axel had spoken right into his ear, and the continued stillness seemed to alert the taller man. 

“Roxy?” he breathed, pulling back a little to try to see the blonde’s face. “What’s wrong?” Roxas stubbornly looked away, refusing to start something right now when he desperately needed the closeness Axel was offering. He knew he’d just accept the situation again in a few moments, he did every time; he knew he’d just take whatever Axel gave him in the end because it was better than nothing at all. Maybe he should just take advantage of that instead of pining for what he couldn’t have. 

“S’nothing,” he mumbled, angling his body suddenly to bury his head into Axel’s chest, with his side leaned against the redhead and his legs folded behind him. “I’m just in my own head right now. Can we smoke one more bowl and just chill for a little?” Unable to see his face, Roxas didn’t know how deeply Axel was reading into his words, but with careful movements Axel stretched to reach the bong and the grinder, then sat back again and loaded the bowl for them off to the side of the couch. Roxas held his place tucked tightly to Axel, his knowing that he was hindering the redhead’s progress and movement, but refusing to budge since the man had made no comment or complaint. His arms were freakishly long anyways, Roxas thought idly before his mind began to picture other things those long arms could be doing and- UGH he needed to get himself under control, or he was gonna keep being a drag. He took the bowl once it was offered, and Axel played with his hair while he took his hit. They cuddled together once the bong was set aside and sank into a comfortable, stoned peace while the TV droned and time passed by in waves. Roxas was just getting around to wondering how Ven was doing when footsteps on the stairs and quiet voices announced Demyx and Zexion’s arrival. 

“Oh hello,” Axel sang out, waggling his fingers in a fluttering wave. “If you two can behave yourselves, you are welcome on the snuggling couch.” He waved a hand imperiously at Demyx’s usual end of the couch as if bestowing them with a great honor. Zexion blushed faintly, hiding his face behind his hair, but Demyx laughed unabashedly and tugged the slate-haired male down into his lap in a mirror of the position Axel had Roxas in. 

“Glad to see you guys. Things went well?” the blonde asked casually as he accepted the bong Roxas passed his way. Axel hummed noncommittally, then focused on Zexion to divert the conversation. 

“You know, when I saw you with Roxy last night, I was worried I was gonna have some competition. I’m glad you seem to prefer your blondes taller.” He chuckled as he pulled Roxas tighter against his chest and drawing a breathless squeak from the smaller man. Zexion smiled faintly in return, but the smile grew significantly as he tilted his face upwards and received a small kiss on the nose from Demyx. 

“You two are the cutest fucking things ever,” a new voice, so similar to Roxas’ own, entered into the conversation, causing everyone to whip their heads around except Roxas. 

“Hey, asshole, you didn’t even text me, just showed up over here? Creeper,” Roxas teased, waving a hand over his shoulder in halfhearted greeting as Ven trudged into the room. “How was campus?” Ven took the chair near the side of the couch where Demyx and Zexion were snuggled together, smiling bemusedly at the pair of them. 

“It was great,” he said, grinning at some thought the words had brought to mind. Another glance at Demyx, and then, “I texted this guy before my phone died, I was gonna see if I could grab some flower. I needed to talk to YOU in person.” Zexion looked politely confused by Ventus’ words, and Demyx glanced at him with an uncomfortable laugh before replying. 

“Yeah sure man, how much?” A sudden dawning comprehension settled on the slate-haired male’s features, and Roxas realized that Zexion probably hadn’t been made aware that Demyx sold weed until that moment. Before anyone could say anything, however, Ven continued one, blind to the tension. 

“Probably an eighth...it’s not just for me.” He sent a sheepish look to the still-stunned Zexion of all people, which made Roxas immediately suspicious. What could Ven be embarrassed about Zexion hearing? What did he even know about Zexion, except...it clicked into place. 

“What are you trying to do to poor Aqua?” Roxas choked out, wide-eyed stare fixed on his brother. Ventus’ face was a mix of pride and chagrin as he made his admission. 

“Not just Aqua...Terra, too. Which is why I needed to talk to you, Rox...is it okay if they come back to your place to smoke after classes? I sorta talked them into trying it with me.” His sheepish laughter met shocked stares from Roxas and Zexion, but it was Zexion who regained composure first. 

“That should be interesting. I’m intrigued to know how you sold them the idea...although I feel it may have more to do with who it was that brought about the idea than anything else.” His smile as he finished speaking was genuine and clearly put support behind Ven, who looked surprised but pleased to have earned the favor of another one of Aqua’s closest friends. Roxas shook his head, pulling his thoughts together. 

“Yeah dude, of course. If I’m not there you better video it, because that’s something I’m gonna wanna see,” Roxas chuckled, trying to picture the poised and controlled Aqua stoned. Zexion leaned forward to murmured apologies from Demyx as he reached over the arm of the couch to get a bag out for Ventus. 

“Here, bro. I’ll add it to Roxas’ tab,” he teased, pulling Zexion back into his arms as he held the weed out to Ven, who looked unsure if Demyx was being serious or not. 

“Really? I don’t mind paying you, man,” he said as he hesitantly accepted the bag from the taller blonde. Demyx just waved his hand vaguely, having begun to take a hit off the bong. Once it had safely moved to Zexion’s hands, Demyx sighed happily and rested his chin on top of steel-blue hair. 

“Nah. Chalk it up to the holiday,” he giggled, kissing Zexion’s cheek as he handed the glassware over to Roxas. Ventus raised an eyebrow questioningly, but it was his brother who voiced his confusion. 

“What holiday are we celebrating?” Roxas asked, looking to the redhead behind him for a hint but finding him just as amusedly bewildered. Zexion’s blush was almost hidden behind his curtain of hair as Demyx laughed. 

“We decided today’s just Fuck It Day. You guys have been participating already, don’t worry. Zemy and Rox are skipping class, Axel’s picking fights before breakfast, Ven’s putting the moves on a girl he just met; just fuck it, do whatever.” He spread his arms wide as he finished, looking at them with a big, cheesy grin plastered over his face, and it was impossible to hold in a chuckle at the picture he created. As the group’s laughter died down, Roxas felt Axel shift to look at Ven. 

“Speaking of, when are you bringing them over to the apartment?” Axel’s question sounded casual, but Roxas knew something was off from the too-innocent expression he wore. 

“I think they’ll be there a little after five thirty,” Ven answered, taking the bong from the redhead for his turn. Axel nodded and sat back again, tugging Roxas once more against his chest. 

“Could I steal your brother away after that? I’ll drive us all over there, and I promise I won’t keep him for WAY too long,” Axel asked smoothly, surprising the blonde in his lap. 

“We’re going somewhere?” Roxas looked over his shoulder eagerly at the redhead, who shrugged noncommittally. 

“We still need to have that talk,” he whispered low enough that only Roxas would hear his words, and immediately some of the smaller man’s anxieties fluttered back to life. Oh yeah, his serious talk, the one Roxas wasn’t supposed to be worrying about, that had fallen from mind in the face of everything else that had happened. Ventus has ignored their exchange, but answered Axel anyway. 

“Yeah man, whatever. Fuck it, right?” He laughed, sounding unconcerned rather than irritated that he would be left alone and making Roxas suspicious that he was planning on not being alone either way. Demyx and Zexion had been whispering to each other during the whole exchange, but Demyx’s phone disturbed their conversation. 

“You’ve really gotta start texting people back, Dem,” Axel admonished playfully, but Roxas felt him surreptitiously slipping his own phone back into his pocket and had another spike of anxiety. Surely Axel wasn’t texting Demyx literally behind his back, right? He tried to write it off as paranoia, he really did, but Demyx had checked his phone when Axel had chided him; eyes wide, Demyx flashed his phone at Zexion to read before beginning a frenzy of typing. Zexion’s face betrayed no emotion, but he did reach over to take the bong from Ventus and began what Roxas was assuming was a diversion. 

“Maybe we should text Riku? He seemed to get along with Roxas’ roommates. Were you wanting to have a group of people as a buffer, or would you prefer the setting to be more...intimate?” As Ven blushed and stammered, trying to deny setting the mood, Roxas chanced a glance at Axel again, which turned into a frown when he saw the redhead studiously examining his nail beds and refusing to make eye contact. Something was definitely up, and he had let half the room in on it while intentionally keeping Roxas out. That was pissing him off in a childish way. 

“I’ll text him,” Roxas volunteered, jumping up from the couch and leaving a hole in Axel’s arms when he did. “Sora and Kairi, too.” Ven looked like he would have argued, but he shut his mouth quickly when he saw the look in his brother’s eyes as Roxas stormed past him and out to the kitchen. Let them talk about him freely now, what the fuck ever. He was mad, mad that his friends were on board with keeping secrets from him, mad at Axel for sharing with them instead of him, mad that they’d agreed to chill because that was the last thing he wanted right now. He pulled open his texts to send Riku a message. 

Monday 4:23 P.M. 

You: hey, can you get out of whatever you had planned for 5:30? 

You: impromptu smoke out at my place. Everyone’s gonna be there, and I know you don’t wanna miss the study hall group getting stoned ;) 

Riku: Really? I’ll be there. Which one’s yours? 

Roxas gave him the unit number before he closed his texts, then, still not ready to face the traitors in the other room, he reopened them to text his roommates. 

Monday 4:25 P.M. 

You: hey, are you guys gonna be home tonight? Apparently everyone’s coming over to our place to smoke. And I mean everyone. 

Sora: yeah bro, that’ll be awesome. Did you already get ahold of them all? I could text Riku 

You: got it covered, we’ll be there pretty soon. 

It was another interesting note to Roxas that Sora would instantly have offered to text Riku; was he looking for an excuse to send a message? Sufficiently distracted, he headed back into the living room, only to find that everyone was looking far too innocent and had dropped whatever they had been talking about in favor of awkward silence. Glaring at them all, he decided to spit out the words he had been holding in; because fuck it, right? 

“Shit, guys, I’ll just meet you back home. I’d hate to intrude on whatever private conversation y’all are trying to have around me.” He turned heel and stomped off, leaving shocked expressions and wide eyes in his wake. 

“Fuck,” he heard Axel mutter, and then louder, “Roxy! Wait up!” He’d already made it through the kitchen, but didn’t bother replying as he heard footsteps behind him. Axel had caught up with him just before he could get his hands on the door. “Rox, come on, don’t be mad.” The blonde rounded on him, frowning up into gorgeous, piercing green eyes. 

“Do you think I’m stupid? That I don’t notice some of my closest friends and brother fucking talking about me behind my back like we’re in high school?” Axel gave him a small, sheepish smile, but it faltered under the angry gaze Roxas continued to level at him. 

“It’s not a big deal,” the redhead defended weakly, trying to step closer, but Roxas just reached behind him for the doorknob. “Roxas...” 

“It’s fine, Axel. You guys talk. I’ll just be at home waiting for y’all to grow the fuck up.” He huffed, but the hurt in Axel’s eyes as the man struggled for words finally broke the anger that had been building in his chest. It didn’t matter what it was, everyone here WAS close to him, and they wouldn’t keep something from him unless they had a reason. When he continued, it was in a much more resigned and defeated tone. “Sorry, just...sorry. I’m gonna go. I’ll cool off before you get to my place, it really doesn’t matter, I’m just pissed. My patience is not great after everything today.” He shrugged and turned to leave, but a very faint touch on his elbow made him pause. 

“Let me drive you?” Axel softly pleaded, but Roxas shook his head. He wouldn’t get his emotions in check with Axel there in the car, separated by inches and feeling like they should talk. 

“Nah, the walk will help. Thanks though,” Roxas said as he ducked out the door and away from Axel’s hand, still stretched out slightly as if reaching for him. That image was a knife twisting in his heart as he walked away. Even if Axel HAD initiated whatever they were talking about, the anguish he had seen on the man’s face crumbled his resolve entirely. He was being a baby. Overly sensitive. Was it really such a big deal that he didn’t know EVERYTHING they talked about? A still-bitter thought that if it hadn’t been about HIM he wouldn’t have cared sprang to mind, but he knew that only added to his irritation rather than caused it. Axel wouldn’t keep something BAD from him, though, right? As he examined his trust for the redhead, he found that he was certain Axel hadn’t meant to hurt his feelings or be spiteful, and that he must have a reason for not sharing with him. He was now glad at least that he hadn’t pushed him about the issue like he had in the alley during his tattoo; one near-disastrous mistake was enough for him, thanks. The reminder of that moment had his feet itching to run right back, but he forced himself forward, not willing to look pathetic on top of bitchy. He’d see them in just a little and laugh it off, let Ven call him out, and then ignore it and have a good time. Maybe he’d pregame with Sora and Kairi; that sounded like a good plan. It felt like ages since he’d spent real time with just the two of them, even though he knew it hadn’t been very long at all. With that plan in mind, his pace picked up, and he felt his sour mood start to fall away with every step. Fuck it.


	30. Chapter Thirty

Ven was beyond irritated with his brother. When Roxas had stormed out and Axel had gone after him, the blonde left his chair to occupy the spot his brother and the not-boyfriend had vacated. Their spot was closer to the bong, which he took from Zexion as he walked past, and the couple on the couch that he could now speak quietly with. 

“Oh my Gaia, Rox is being such a bitch,” he huffed as if personally offended, which he wasn’t, but...his brother’s little fit had better have run it’s course by the time they got to the apartment. Demyx gave a weak laugh, sounding more like he was releasing tension than finding his assessment humorous, but whatever. “Do you think an eighth will be enough for everyone? I wasn’t planning for such a big group.” Demyx gave a real laugh then, taking the bong from him after he’d taken his hit. 

“I’ll bring some, too,” he assured the smaller blonde before lighting up the bowl. Zexion leaned forward slightly, catching Ventus’ eye before speaking. 

“So I’m very interested to hear...how did you get Aqua and Terra to agree to come with essentially a stranger to smoke pot? No offense meant,” he hurriedly added, clearly worried he was insulting Ven with his question. Ven waved a hand uncaringly, signifying he didn’t mind. 

“No it’s fine. Um, well, I met up with Aqua between her classes and we went on a walk and ran into Terra. We sat down at this fountain and I ended up saying something about smoking, they mentioned they hadn’t, and one thing led to another, I guess.” Ven beamed, proud of his accomplishment, but the response had Zexion narrowing his eyes critically as if examining data that just did not add up correctly. 

“Ventus, the part you’re leaving out is exactly the part I wish to hear. Riku’s made the argument several times, explaining logically, chemically, and socially why they should at least try it once. Terra I believe was only holding out for Aqua; he seemed to be more swayed. Aqua, on the other hand, has had a counterpoint to every one. She’s not upset by it, but...still, as a researcher, I-“ Zexion’s analytical imploring was cut short by Demyx turning him partially to kiss him into silence while Ventus struggled to contain his rising blush. Giggling, Demyx pulled away and winked at his companion. 

“Ease off, Zexy. From that face, I’m willing to bet his argument was less scientific and more...flirty.” He laughed again, but kindly, and Ven sent him a look of gratitude. Truth be told, it wasn’t that bad, but...a part of him really wanted to keep the conversation the three of them had shared to himself. He had been a little flirty, but so had Aqua, and Terra backed him at all the right moments. They’d felt...close, connected to each other, and that was something he wanted to hold on to. Speaking of it seemed like it might somehow dissolve the perfectness of that time. Even if he hadn’t actually talked to Aqua about a date; he could always do that later, now that they would be coming over to Roxas’ place. Once he’d straightened out his expression, he laughed and rubbed the back of his head. 

“Yeah, something like that. So,” he decided an abrupt shift in the conversation would distract everyone sufficiently. “Is Axel really gonna do it, do you think? From what I’ve heard, it’s been a long time.” Zexion smirked, and Demyx threw a quick glance at the doorway before answering. 

“It’s probably been even longer than that. We’ve all been trying to get it to happen, but...there have been some snags. Also, side note, did Roxas tell you about the time he drunkenly yelled at me to give Axel to him while he was laying in the dude’s bed? It was hysterical.” Ven burst into laughter, picturing his little brother camped out and demanding the redhead in bed. Oh Gaia, those two were ridiculous, and he’d only been putting up with it for a few days. 

“You guys are the real MVPs for dealing with those two,” he chuckled, then remembered something. “Hey, What was going on with them earlier? Did they tell you?” Zexion shook his head. 

“All we know is that Axel texted saying we didn’t need to call anyone because they were almost home,” Demyx added, loading them a new bowl now. It was then that Axel re-entered the room alone, looking dejected. 

“Why do I fuck everything up?” he groaned, flopping back down onto the couch in the small space that Ventus had left and putting his feet up on the blonde’s lap. Ventus shrugged internally; let the dude lounge on him. His brother was being an idiot and he’d just stolen the guy’s spot. Demyx sympathetically patted the toe of his Converse and passed him the fresh bowl. 

“To give Roxas some credit, you guys weren’t exactly being subtle,” Zexion muttered softly, defending his friend, and Ventus remembered that Demyx and Axel were strangers to the slate-haired man twenty-four hours ago and his loyalties clearly lay with the guy who’d introduced them all. That made him warm up to the aloof Zexion considerably. 

“He’s right,” Ven agreed, but then flippantly gestured with his hand. “But also, my brother’s being a big baby.” Axel just groaned, covering his eyes with a forearm draped over his face. 

“This was SUPPOSED to be a good thing,” the redhead moaned, but did uncover his face long enough to take his hit and pass the bong to Ventus. “If he’s pissed at me, tonight’s probably not gonna go like I planned.” Demyx frowned at the redhead, folding his arms over his chest. 

“Oh no you don’t, no backing out now. Besides, what would you tell him we were all talking about if you bailed?” Axel paled at that, and opened his mouth soundlessly several times before seeming to surrender and slumping down in his seat. 

“Oh Gaia, I fucked up,” he all but whispered, sounding pained. 

“Dude, whats the big deal? It’s just Roxas. He’ll get over himself and be back to normal in no time. Plus, it’s common knowledge that you guys want in each other’s pants, so I don’t really see much going wrong.” Ventus spoke in a disinterested tone, but he was raging with curiosity over Axel’s dramatization. Roxas had said something about Axel not dating, but he couldn’t remember every detail of their situation clearly. Demyx gave him a wide eyed look that clearly told him to drop it, however, so he did. Axel, on the other hand, stared at him curiously. 

“Ven, you still picture Roxas as the cute little kid brother back home, don’t you?” he asked slowly, and Ven felt a twinge of resentment at the implication behind the words. 

“Well yeah man, he’s the same as he always was. Just a little older, partying a little harder, in a different place. Hate to break it to you, but he IS the kid brother.” His smug sense of satisfaction was short lived as he saw Demyx shake his head while trying to stifle a laugh and Zexion take a hit to hide his smirk. Axel just gave him a blank look bordering on impatience. 

“I know he’s told you the stories, but think about it from an outside perspective, Ven. If I told you that I was gonna introduce you to someone who was awesome and funny and sweet, but was also a programmer who created an illegal app that was making him so well-known that the mob was trying to get to him, was getting rich like a rockstar in no time at all, and was EXACTLY the right kind of attractive for you, you probably wouldn’t want to mess things up, either. That’s not even taking my own personal shit into account.” He lips tilted into a smirk, but it was with soft, warm eyes. “Your brother may be small, but he’s a little intimidating. And I’m still working out my own stuff. I’ve been trying to get my shit together for a while now.” He grimaced, then broke the gaze he’d locked on Ven to reach for the bong. The room was silent for a few moments, but Ven decided not to let it drop without one more jab. 

“Eh, I dunno, man. Rox is still gonna be my baby brother no matter what you tell me. And he’s only had that thing done for a little while, right? I think it’s an excuse.” As Axel’s mouth fell open in shock at being called out so blatantly, Ven took the glassware from his limp hand and took his hit over the sound of Demyx’s snickering. The approving gaze Zexion leveled at him made him puff out his chest and decide the slate-haired guy might be his favorite of the three. Demyx was grinning, but then a troubled look overtook him. 

“Wait...Axel, rewind, the fuck did you just say?” Axel looked a little taken aback at the tall blonde’s outburst, and was clearly trying to remember what phrase could have drawn this reaction from his roommate. Ventus replayed the conversation in his head, trying to do the same, but Demyx didn’t have the patience for their slow brain power. “What did you say about the mob?” The redhead’s face looked like he’d just been hit by a train; clearly, he’d said too much, but no one was going to let it go now. 

“Oh Gaia, he’s right, what the fuck?” Ven muttered, fixing an accusatory stare on the man beside him. Axel held up his hands, resigned. 

“Well, you see, uh...” The redhead sighed as he looked around at them, then went on. “Yeah, Roxy’s got Reno’s boss trying to get him to join them. That’s where we went earlier, to a meeting with them. And your cute little brother rejected their offer, told ‘em to shove it, and we bounced. He’s a badass when he wants to be.” The stupefied faces around him made Axel grin smugly, as if he were bragging on himself. Ven was...in shock. People were after Roxas? This sounded really serious, not something the redhead should be proud of. 

“So he told them to get lost and they just...did?” Ven asked warily, eyes now glued to Axel’s face for any signs he was being misled. He didn’t have any firsthand experience, but that didn’t really sound like that was how things worked. Axel’s expression grew grim. 

“So far. But that’s why I wanted someone to be on alert to call Reno,” he allowed, forcing a smile back on his face. “But that was this morning, guys, it’s done with now. Can we please move past it? Respect the holiday,” he said the last part as if offended, and Demyx chuckled, unable to help himself. Ventus was still more than apprehensive about what Axel had said, but he figured he’d get it out of his brother instead of continuing to needle the redhead. 

“Fuck it,” Ven shrugged with a smile, handing the cashed bowl over to Demyx. “Can we smoke one more bowl before we head that way?” He wanted to be as chill as possible when Aqua got there, rather than let his overpowering crush make him look like an idiot in front of her. Again.


	31. REAL Chapter Thirty-One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG I AM SO SORRY 
> 
> This chapter was skipped when posting 
> 
> And it’s IMPORTANT 
> 
> Oh my gosh 🤦
> 
> Please forgive me, wonderful readers, and come back and read this 🙄🥺😩
> 
>  
> 
> Actual chapter notes:  
> Here’s where some of the real violence starts being more prevalent. If that is an issue, lmk and I will post chapter summaries for some of the more..erm...dramatic bits. You’ve been warned, lovely readers. Also please don’t come after me for what’s about to happen lol

This was the funniest shit he’d ever seen. Half the room was inexperienced smokers, and those who smoked regularly had already been pretty stoned before meeting up, so by this point everyone was high off their ass. Zexion and Riku had started a debate on the best combat style. Zexion, studious researcher that he was, felt that using knowledge and deception against your opponents from a safe distance was the best tactic; history and war buff Riku was practiced in several different types of martial arts and fighting styles, and was adamantly defending that a direct, blunt, and head-on approach was the best way to go. Demyx was supporting Zexion’s sentiment of staying out of direct conflict, while Sora jabbed that he’d rather have a sword in his hand and face the enemy than take the chicken way out. Kairi was glued to her phone, playing some junk game in which you designed and arranged furniture, and couldn’t be bothered with what she was referring to as a ‘testosterone-fueled, childish fight.’ Axel, seemingly relieved that Roxas’s previous bad mood had dissipated, was content to melt into the couch, trapping the blonde in the circle of his arms, and watch the room. Roxas couldn’t help himself, though; he was giggling while watching the antics of his brother, Aqua, and Terra. The three of them had converged in a mostly-empty corner of the room, using some pillows, blankets, a few chairs, and the corner of the entertainment center to construct themselves a little fort. Ventus had gathered every snack he could find and brought them to their little shelter, and the three were now experimenting with weird food combinations, which was cracking Roxas up to no end. 

“Give me the celery?” Aqua implored one of the guys, and crinkling cellophane could be heard. “If I lay the Fruit-By-The-Foot on top and press it in, I can put the frosting inside that.” Ventus giggled, as did Roxas from his position on the couch, but Terra sounded horrified. 

“Frosting?! Straight frosting. Inside celery? No. Nope. I’m not doing this one,” he balked, but Ven chimed in with enthusiasm. 

“I am! We used to eat peanut butter and celery caterpillars when we were kids. Our mom would make little eyes with raisins and pretzel antennas...I bet this is like, the sweet version of that,” the blonde said nostalgically, and a bell-like peak of laughter came from Aqua. 

“I’ve got...Coco Puff eyes...and Cheeto antennas. That’s gonna have to do,” she said cheerfully, clearly piecing together their latest experiment. “A cute little caterpillar, Terra, and I worked so hard on him.” Roxas was willing to bet her statement was accompanied by puppy dog eyes, and Terra groaned loudly. 

“You guys. That’s disgusting, you’re not really going to eat that, right?” 

“WE’RE going to eat it. All of us. Together,” Ventus said firmly, earning another giggle from his brother. Terra groaned and complained for a while, but the other two wore him down eventually, and although he claimed it was the most disgusting thing he’d ever tasted, he apparently ate the whole thing. After a few more moments of banter, Ven suddenly said, “What is the one thing you care about more than anything else?” It wasn’t immediately clear who he was addressing, but the conversation was clearly about to be one that wouldn’t welcome eavesdropping; Roxas politely tuned in to the debate his other friends were having instead. 

“Obviously superhuman powers and abilities wouldn’t change where I would place myself!” Zexion was saying in a fairly heated tone, which was actually something for the normally calm and patient man. “I’m not a fool; even if I was able to avoid ninety nine percent of damage in direct combat, I wouldn’t be willing to take the one percent, and if you put yourself within arms reach of your opponent, there will never be absolute certainty that you will avoid all damage dealt. I would stay well away from my opponent and use my powers from a distance while moving constantly to confuse them as to my true location.” Riku and Sora were both shaking their heads, the brunette much more emphatically than his silver-haired counterpart. 

“That’s ridiculous,” Riku was speaking as soon as Zexion’s words had left his mouth. “You’d never deal enough damage fast enough to keep them from finding you at any point unless you were facing someone much weaker than yourself. If you had a super ability, all the more reason to rush the enemy. A head-on approach, with enough strength and heart behind it, would surprise and crush them before they had a chance to do real damage.” 

“AND if you have a friend or two at your back, your power would be greater, plus you’d have people to watch your back or attack the enemy with you from multiple sides. How would your movement and distance thing work if you had two people coming at you at the same time? Or more?” Sora threw the scenario at Zexion, and the man paled at the thought. Demyx, however, was unfazed. 

“Exactly the point! The more people I have running at me, the more space I want between myself and them. I’m chicken! If I have a superpower like...like...an element, say. I’d make a strong attack that I’d blast at the other person, like...think water cannon.” Axel spoke up in the wake of Demyx’s point, surprising them all slightly. 

“Or fire,” the redhead drawled, leaning forward and up so that he was sitting rather than lounging. “If you had fire, at a distance you could trap your enemy where they can’t escape or get closer. Then again, having fire would make hand to hand combat fucking intense. I’d do both, I think. Make a wall of fire in a ring around me and my opponent...or opponents...and then rush ‘em with flaming weapons.” He sounded so sure of his choice, Roxas couldn’t help but wonder if this was some sort of fantasy he’d imagined previously. Everyone stared, wide-eyed, for a second before they all began speaking at once. 

“You’re missing the whole point of the debate-“ 

“That’s not fair, Axel, you can’t just-“ 

“But what if something happened to you and no one could rush in to rescue-“ 

“No way, man, you’d end up setting more on fire than would really-“ 

“Y’all are just sore losers,” Kairi’s quiet, bored tone managed to shut them all up as everyone’s focus shifted to her. Now that she wasn’t locked into her game, she looked irritated and restless. “He’s got a valid point. Now I’m gonna go for a walk. See you guys around,” and waved over her shoulder as she breezed out the door, leaving stunned silence in her wake. Sora looked at Riku with a confused, torn expression, and Roxas thought he would apologize and chase after her, but instead the brunette shrugged weakly and looked back at the group. 

“I still say it’s cheating. No one else got to pick their superpower. If we had, obviously we would pick something that suits each of the styles we had been defending,” he mumbled, and a collective breath seemed to be released as everyone relaxed again, letting the moment of awkwardness slip away. 

“You’re just mad I picked fire first,” Axel teased halfheartedly, “because it’s obviously the best power to have.” That sparked up a new debate between the four, as they each began to defend what they imagined would be the best superpower to have. Axel smirked, letting himself slump back down into his former position and tugging Roxas a little closer as he did so. “You’d be with Riku and Sora,” he whispered in the blonde’s ear, sending a shiver down Roxas’ spine as Axel’s breath tickled his ear and sped up his heart rate . “Trying to run straight at your enemy. But you’re smart, and fast, and deceptively strong...I bet you’d do something like dual wield to take ‘em down twice as fast, no friends needed.” Roxas turned slightly to give him a look, raising one eyebrow as he did, and could feel Axel’s quiet laugh reverberate through him. “Am I wrong, though?” Roxas had no answer for that, so he snorted and rolled his eyes instead. He reached over for his pipe to clear out any residual green from its last bowl before ashing it and loading a fresh one. 

“Anyone want in on this?” he offered to the bickering friends, who all stopped and perked up with interest. “How about you guys?” Roxas’ call towards the makeshift tent, but no answer came from that direction. After a few seconds of silence, Roxas pushed the pipe into Axel’s hands as he rose and tiptoed across the room. Lifting one corner of the blanket up marginally, Roxas peeked inside and what he saw made his heart melt. Ventus, Aqua, and Terra had all fallen asleep laying together; Aqua’s head rested in Ven’s lap, Ven was pillowed by Terra’s knee, and Terra had his head on Aqua’s calves. Roxas let the cloth slip from his hands as he turned to the group, whispering, “awhh,” as he made his way back to the couch. “They’re all asleep. That’s so fucking cute.” His voice had returned to a normal volume by the time he had settled himself back into his spot and took the bowl back from Axel. Zexion smiled fondly in the direction of the napping trio, and Sora pretended to swoon onto Riku’s shoulder. 

“They’re all so taken with each other,” Riku mused, looking thoughtful. “But isn’t he leaving again soon?” Roxas lit the bowl, looking forlornly towards the corner where his brother and two friends slept. 

“Yeah,” came his glum sigh of a response. “That’s the plan. He’s gonna go check out some other colleges.” Zexion and Riku shared a knowing look while Axel smirked and Demyx shook his head with a grin. 

“Do you really think he’s gonna pick somewhere else?” Sora asked sarcastically, grinning and giving a voice to the group’s thoughts, making Roxas laugh. 

“Yeah, maybe those two tipped the scales in my favor,” he allowed with a big smile stretching onto his face. Sora, though, slowly lost his, replacing it with a thoughtful frown. 

“Are you gonna move out, man?” he asked quietly, looking towards the blanket fort as he spoke. Roxas opened his mouth, but before he could come up with an answer for the downcast brunette, Demyx began to giggle madly. 

“Don’t worry, Sor, Ven can just move in to Roxas’ old room aft-“ Demyx began speaking, but when he’d mentioned Roxas’ name, Axel sat bolt upright with a furious glare; Zexion caught on and, looking a comedic mix of panicked and flustered, threw himself into a kiss with the tall blonde in a desperate move to silence him. All of that left Roxas, Riku, and Sora to look at each other in confusion, which quickly turned to awkward, averted gazes as Demyx, somehow immune to the sudden tension, overcame his surprise and began to return Zexion’s kiss enthusiastically. Riku, not having been a part of the morning, looked especially uncomfortable as he watched his calm, reserved friend being maneuvered more securely into the easygoing stoner’s lap. A sharp, exaggerated cough barked from the redhead behind Roxas, making Zexion turn almost scarlet in embarrassment and push away from a pouting Demyx. The taller blonde’s pout was replaced with panic, however, as he locked eyes with Axel over Roxas’s head; clearly, the redhead was making a face that the shorter man found himself feeling glad he wasn’t on the receiving end of. Then it clicked. 

“You guys are being weird about whatever y’all were talking about earlier, aren’t you?” he asked bluntly, half-turning to frown at the man behind him. The words broke Axel’s livid stare, and he looked down at Roxas while an incredibly uncomfortable few seconds of silence passed between the group. Unwilling to look anywhere but luminous green eyes in the hopes of forcing the truth out of the redhead, Roxas watched emotions flitting across Axel’s pale, angular face; chagrin, frustration, longing, anger, and anticipation were some of the ones he could identify. Finally, his face settled into resignation, and he sighed softly. 

“Wanna get out of here for a little? I think it’s time we had that talk,” he murmured, voice thick, and Roxas felt his heart burst into action. He desperately hung on to the residual irritation he felt about the whole thing, in an effort to keep his mounting anxiety out of his voice. 

“Sure,” he rose, shooting Sora and Riku a wide-eyed look as Axel got to his feet behind the blonde, “lead the way.” Axel stalked off towards the door without a look back, so Roxas gave a small wave to the others and hurried after him. As he was pulling the door shut behind himself, he heard Sora’s voice, sharp and loud in his confusion. 

“Okay, wait, oh my Gaia WHAT is going on?” Internally, he echoed the sentiment as he struggled to catch up with Axel, who was already pulling open the door to his car. 

“Axe, wait up,” he called out, jogging over to the vehicle as Axel slid inside and turned the engine over. “What’s going on?” Axel didn’t immediate respond, choosing instead to reverse from the spot and start driving, though where his destination was, Roxas could only guess. They were headed vaguely towards where Axel worked, but not taking their usual route. After a few more moments, Axel finally spoke, but chose to ignore Roxas’ question entirely. 

“Can I take us somewhere to eat?” he asked instead, risking a peek toward the small blonde as he did. Roxas felt like his head was swimming from having his emotions tugged in many directions at once, and was sure his expression was bewildered at best, so he did what he could to compose himself before shrugging carelessly. 

“Sure. Is this the kind of conversation we need to be on a public setting to have?” he asked cautiously, trying to seem like it wasn’t a big deal despite his stomach twisting uncomfortably. Axel just snorted and rolled his eyes, again completely ignoring Roxas’ question when he spoke. 

“Sushi okay?” It was Roxas’ turn to roll his eyes, irritation pricking at being blatantly disregarded, but he nodded despite himself. 

“Sure,” Roxas returned again lamely. He felt far too anxious to be worried about food right now, but Axel nodded to himself and took a turn, driving the rest of the way in thoughtful silence that Roxas was too apprehensive to break. The place looked really nice, Roxas noted as they pulled past the front entrance and to a devoted parking area a few shops away. The bold, clean, minimalistic look of the exterior was continued inside as well; the aesthetic and quiet, respectful conversation humming low in the background made for a very classy atmosphere, and Roxas immediately felt underdressed. Axel led them to the host stand, where a stocky young girl with cropped black hair waited with a bland smile. The redhead flashed her a smile, and Roxas couldn’t help but focus on the hand Axel held behind his back, ghosting over the blonde but never quite touching him. 

“Table for two?” he requested demurely, eyes seeming to search the smaller man’s face as he spoke. Roxas couldn’t look away, unsure if he was showing Axel what he wanted to find or not, until the hostess brightly asked them to follow her and led them to a table near the window. The sun was setting and the view was almost romantic in its beauty; dying rays of light painted the clouds in blues and purples and pinks, and every cloud was lined in the last traces of golden sunshine. Axel gave a low, quiet whistle as he took his seat opposite the blonde, gaze following Roxas’ to the sky. “We couldn’t have asked for a better setting,” he murmured, seemingly to himself, before he looked back to Roxas with an anxious smile. “Ever been here before? Do you know what you want?” Roxas shook his head; it wouldn’t have made a difference, his current anxiety levels made the idea of eating laughable. 

“Just pick something for me,” he murmured, idly toying with the corner of his menu. Axel nodded and made a show of studying his own menu, and Roxas found himself staring, drinking in the tiny details about the man he’d been longing for like the way his eyebrows furrowed slightly as he considered his options and the way he drummed long, graceful fingers idly on the table in a vague rhythm. Inwardly sighing, Roxas agonized about how similar yet wildly different this situation could be if things between them changed. The redhead glanced up and his eyes locked with Roxas’ blues, and the gaze held for a long moment before they were interrupted by their waitress who arrived and immediately began to chatter quietly about the specials being offered. Axel sent her off with orders for drinks and several different rolls to share, then returned his focus to the small blonde across from himself. Roxas swallowed hard; here it goes. 

“Sorry I was being an insensitive jerk,” Axel began sheepishly, but Roxas shook his head immediately. 

“No, really, don’t be sorry. I was being an idiot, it doesn’t matter who you text or what you’re talking about, I was-“ He stopped, surprised by the relieved laugh that escaped his companion. Axel’s face had smoothed into a distractingly attractive, easy smile, and a great deal of the redhead’s apprehension seemed to dissipate with the sound. 

“I’m gonna tell you all about that in a second, and I promise I won’t do it again. You aren’t still mad at me?” The hesitation that came with the question made something in Roxas’ heart twinge painfully. He shouldn’t have gotten so worked up about something so minute. The blonde offered a small, chagrined smile; here when it was just the two of them like this, he couldn’t find the frustration and irritation from before. 

“Not mad,” he assured, before his eyes nervously flitted away from Axel’s bright green ones. “You gonna tell me what was up with that first, or are we having this talk?” Axel rubbed the back of his head, looking almost embarrassed. 

“It’s basically the same thing,” he admitted, but before he could continue, their waitress arrived with drinks and sushi. Once everything had been distributed and the woman had left, however, Axel opted to pick at his food rather than resume what he’d been saying. Roxas was dying. Against his will, his anxiety-riddled mind reminded him just how far he’d had to push to get him to talk the day he’d gotten his tattoo. He didn’t want a repeat of the disastrous aftermath, though...maybe just a little nudge? 

“Are you giving up?” he asked flatly, pushing a stray grain of rice around his plate with a focused determination not to give anything away. Hopefully, if he was casual enough about it, they could at least stay friends. Whatever happened now, at least there would be no more of the agonizing suspense as he waited on Axel. The taller man’s head snapped up as he stared, wide-eyed, at Roxas. A vaguely questioning sound escaped him as he seemed to struggle with forming a response, and the blonde sighed softly. “Yeah, I was worried those dates might have been a bit much, but you seemed-“ 

“Roxas,” Axel huffed sharply, ending what was sure to have been a pathetic effort at saving face on Roxas’ part. “Look at me.” The blonde hesitantly forced his eyes up again to meet Axel’s disbelieving green ones. “How is that the thing you’re worried I dragged you out here for?” A blush began creeping up the back of his neck, and it was all he could do to keep from escaping that soul-searing gaze. Axel let the question go, and Roxas was grateful he hadn’t been forced to give an answer. “I’m being a coward, Roxas, spinning out what’s become painfully unavoidable. I didn’t mean to give you that impression, though, not in the slightest. I’m sorry that I did.” Roxas had frozen, following Axel’s words closely, imagination running wild with hopes of what his words would lead to. “You already know why I’ve been hesitant, and I can’t excuse or change my past, but I can admit that for a while now I’ve known how this would turn out, and I’ve been fighting it hard. But you know what, I’ve realized...I’m missing out on you. And there’s no way I can keep on doing that just to pretending I’d be avoiding possible future pain. You still wanna give the whole ‘dating’ thing a try?” He beamed, clearly proud he’d managed to get his words out, but they were met with dead silence as Roxas’ brain struggled to catch up. After a very pregnant pause, the blonde found his voice. 

“What happened to being worried about-“ he began, but was quickly interrupted. 

“I’m much more likely to make sure you’re safe if I’m always at your side,” he said with a shrug, not needing to hear the question fully. Roxas pauses, mind whirling and heart nearly bursting. It was exactly what he’d been dreaming about for this whole time, and it was almost unbelievable now that it was really happening. A slow, mischievous grin dawned on his face. 

“When are we letting Ven have my room?” he teased, understanding Demyx’s earlier comment now, and Axel let out a laugh tinted with relief and elation. 

“Mmm, want to come inspect the accommodations after this? Gotta make sure they meet your standard of living,” Axel purred, emerald eyes flashing and making Roxas’ stomach clench in anticipation. Oh dear Gaia, he was finally going to get Axel in bed, and his pulse was racing from the thought alone. 

“Think they’d box this all up for us if we said there’s been an emergency?” Roxas asked innocently, through he sent Axel a pointed look, and the redhead practically tripped over himself as he leapt to his feet. 

“Ma’am?” he called out, a note of desperation in his voice, and hurried over to where their waitress stood near the front podium. Roxas forced his features into a concerned expression as he watched Axel speaking to the woman in hushed tones. She gave a quick nod and rushed toward the kitchens as Axel strolled back over to where the smaller man waited. “Keep that expression, it’s perfect. I said we just got a call that our house is flooding,” he whispered conspiratorially, and Roxas had to bite his tongue to hold in his laugh as their waitress returned with two styrofoam boxes and began transferring their food into them hurriedly. 

“I’m so sorry to hear about your home, I hope there’s not much damage,” she said kindly as she folded the boxes closed and handed them to Axel, who accepted them with a nod of thanks. 

“We appreciate you, and to expedite our departure, here’s the full amount plus something for your trouble,” the redhead murmured, passing her some munny before turning to lead Roxas from the restaurant. Once past the expansive windows, the pair allowed their pace to slow and laughter to erupt between them. Roxas angles his direction, sidestepping and bringing himself close to Axel’s side. 

“So do I get to tell everyone you’re my boyfriend?” he asked playfully, leaning into the taller man, who put an arm around his shoulders casually to hold him closer. 

“You can tell whoever you want, as long as that’s a ‘yes’ from you,” Axel replied before placing a soft kiss on the crown of his head. Roxas has the briefest idea of pulling Axel into the gap between shops they were about to pass in order to make out with him in relative privacy, but when his eyes flicked to the gap, he was startled to see a large figure stepping out from the space. He stumbled to a halt in surprise, dragging Axel with him, as he blankly returned the stranger’s stare; the man had locked eyes with Roxas when he had been spotted and seemed intent on holding his gaze. A second figure emerging from the shadows to stand in their path drew a snarl from Axel, who Roxas could feel tense at his side, and a laugh from the first man. 

“Evening, fellas,” the vastly muscled figure on the left called out in a gruff voice, stepping forward and into a spot of brighter illumination provided by an overhead streetlight. He had short gingery hair and well-groomed sideburns ending almost at his huge, rock-like jaw, with a sneer across his boxy face. The second man stepped forward as well, and it took Roxas a second to spot the small differences between the identical men; the one on the right was missing the sideburns and had an eyepatch covering one of his eyes, otherwise they would have been indistinguishable from one another. 

“What’s wrong, can’t say ‘hello’?” the second laughed as he fell in beside his brother. Axel’s arm disappeared from around him as the redhead took a step forward, purposely placing himself directly between the men and Roxas. Despite his usual bravado, the lanky man didn’t answer the taunting, and his silence instantly sent the panic of a small, hunted animal through him. His muscles locked in place and he watched every movement the pair made with wide, darting eyes. 

“I think your good looks musta made them speechless,” the first chuckled back, taking another easy step forward as if strolling along at an extremely unhurried pace. Axel shifted his weight in that direction, but when the twin followed suit, he shifted backwards half a step when he re-centered his position. The man focused his single eye on Axel and spoke in a lower tone, placating and enticing at once. 

“We really only need the little guy. If you get outta here, we ain’t gonna chase ya.” A harsh growl rumbled through Axel’s chest, but he made no motion to leave. The first twin shrugged, rotating a shoulder in a shrug that ended in him bringing heavy fists together to crack his knuckles menacingly. 

“Suit yourself, pretty boy,” he jeered as he paced forward again intimidatingly, but in a blur of motion, Axel launched himself into motion. The redhead threw himself at the first man, slamming into him with his full weight and knocking the larger figure off-balance. 

“Roxas, RUN!” Axel shouted frantically, landing lightly back on his feet and whirling around as soon as they touched the ground to try to get in a defensive stance to face the second man. He let out an angry roar as he charged again, but the first man had regained composure quickly and as Axel leapt forward, a massive fist swung through the air to strike his temple with a sickening thud, sending the redhead’s limp form crashing to the ground at the feet of the man with the eyepatch. 

“Axel!” Roxas yelled, reaching blindly toward Axel’s crumpled figure, but he was still locked in place in his shock. Both men turned to Roxas with mirrored looks of predatory glee on their faces, and the ‘fight or flight’ response in Roxas went haywire in its desire to protect him. 

“Grab him and lets get out of here,” the second brother muttered, and the first nodded, moving towards the blonde with purpose. Immobile muscled suddenly releases, and Roxas sprang into action. He surged forward, landing a wild blow to his attacker’s jaw before turning and bolting. The element of surprise got him a few feet away, but the man with the eyepatch was right on his heels. Roxas could hear labored breathing at the back of his neck before his feet were swept out from under him and he fell hard, his shoulder and part of his face grinding against the pavement beneath him and leaving him in a daze. If only he had been as quick to action as Axel; Axel, who was lying in an unconscious heap after trying to buy him a chance to get away. He could taste coppery blood in his mouth, feel it beginning to bead up on his face and the heels of his hands. Then he was roughly hauled to his feet by the collar of his shirt, and the movement sparked some of his fight back to life. He kicked out blindly behind him and was rewarded by a pained grunt as his foot struck something solid and the hands holding him loosened their grip. Roxas threw himself to the side and was set to dash off again when his eyes instinctively sought out Axel and he stumbled to a halt, blood turning to ice in his veins. The man he’d initially thrown his punch at was crouched down next to where the redhead had fallen, using a fistful of long spiky locks to tilt Axel’s head back and expose his throat. In his other hand, a long object sharply reflected the light from overhead; the man locked eyes with the blonde and rested the point of his knife against the pale column of Axel’s neck. The silent command for obedience from the huge man was followed immediately, Roxas slowly raising his hands in defeat. Before he could form the words to plead for Axel’s safety, though, he felt something collide with the side of his head, and he was lifted off his feet with the force. In the second he was falling, he caught sight of the other brother standing over him before his head struck the ground and everything abruptly went black.


	32. Chapter Thirty-Two

The group broke apart a little after after midnight, splitting into smaller groups and drifting their separate ways slowly. Kairi had returned, yet her sour mood persisted and she left to sulk in their room after a while. Sora, when asked if he needed to go talk to her, pointed out that he was the only remaining host and that he was going to stay...to be polite. That was obviously why he was staying. It had nothing to do with the impossibly interesting silver-haired man beside him. They’d been both competitive with and supportive of one another in turns all evening, and Riku was fascinating when he spoke, intelligent and persuasive. Sora definitely wasn’t just trying to draw out their time together. 

Demyx and Zexion were the next to depart, as they were clearly wanting to spend some time alone with each other. Alcohol had been brought out once the sleeping trio had woken up from their nap, and the tipsier Demyx got, the handsier he was. When they left, everyone laughed and asked them to report on if Axel and Roxas were officially a couple now. Once they’d gone, Ven, Aqua, and Terra started muttering amongst themselves, and Riku rolled his eyes towards Sora and shot him a wink before leaning in to speak conspiratorially in his ear. 

“I bet you anything you’re not gonna have to worry about hosting Ven tonight,” the silver-haired male whispered, and Sora could feel his breath tickling the fine hairs around his ear. He suppressed a shudder and gave Riku a curious look, but the taller man just leaned back with a smug smile. A moment later, Ven broke apart from their conversation with a mildly chagrined look. 

“Hey Sora? I think I’m gonna walk these two to Aqua’s and hang out there for a while. Will you let Rox know where I’m at if he comes back here tonight?” Sora grinned at him brightly. He liked Roxas’ friends, but managing time to hang out with the one he was getting along with the best was an appreciated thing. Aqua, on the other hand, appeared concerned by his choice of words. 

“Not that we haven’t enjoyed hanging out with you guys! Would you two like to come along?” Sora hesitated, not wanting to admit to his thoughts, and Riku answered for them in lieu of his silence. 

“Thanks, Aqua, but you guys go ahead. We’ll wait for Roxas if they don’t go back to Axel’s place.” Aqua nodded, and Sora caught the wide, excited smile that dawned on Ventus’ face. Those two were adorable. Terra wished them a good evening as the trio departed, Ven and Aqua absorbed in deciding what they would make for ‘midnight dinner,’ and then the door shut and Sora was left in abrupt silence with Riku. The silver-haired male gave him a small smile. 

“You didn’t want to go with them, did you? I don’t mean to speak for you,” his words were smooth and low, and Sora was surprised at his consideration. 

“Nah, I’m happy just chilling here,” he replied cheerfully, interlocking his hands behind his head with a toothy grin. A laugh escaped Riku before his eyes traveled down the length of Sora and then stopped on the coffee table in front of him, where the pipe and a few drinks lay abandoned, and a smirk slowly grew on his face. 

“How ‘chill’ were you wanting to be? Because I’d definitely be up for getting trashed tonight. If I can steal your couch,” he asked, and Sora couldn’t look away from the intense stare directed at him. Something about those bright, sea foam eyes brought everything in him right to the surface. 

“Wanna order a pizza?” Sora asked eagerly, and the smile on Riku grew wider. 

“Perfect. I’ll get the pizza, will you grab that case of beer out of the fridge?“ The pair set about the task of getting everything ready, and wound up sitting together on the couch, Riku opening up a few of the beers as Sora loaded them a bowl. 

“Think the pizza guy’s gonna mind?” Sora asked, indicating the weed, but Riku just snorted and took the pipe out of his hands to light it. 

“I think anyone delivering pizza at one A.M. in a college town isn’t too worried about weed,” the silverette said mildly as he exhaled a puff of smoke and returned the glassware. Sora took his hit quickly to hide his chagrin, wishing for a snarky retort to one-up Riku. 

“Have much experience with late-night college-town pizza delivery?” was the best he could come up with, but it brought a pink dusting to the other man’s cheeks. He pulled himself back together quickly, however. 

“Only as much as any other single guy living in said college town,” he said grumpily, making Sora laugh. 

“Movie until it gets here?” the brunette asked placatingly, pushing the pipe towards Riku on the table and picking up the Xbox controller. Riku nodded and sparked the bowl while Sora pulled up Netflix and began perusing the available titles. “What about this one?” he asked, eyes flicking to Riku to gauge his reaction to the new horror movie he’d pulled up. The silver-haired man looked at it appraisingly, but ultimately shook his head. 

“Lets put something on that we don’t have to be very invested in; I’d rather talk to you than pay attention to a movie,” he said offhandedly, passing the pipe over as he spoke. The words gave Sora a warm feeling in his chest; he was thrilled this very interesting and exciting person was more interested in him than in watching something, though he knew he wouldn’t admit that out loud in a million years. 

“What about...this one?” he questioned, pulling up a competition show in which participants had to earn points by completing various ridiculous tasks or challenges. Riku nodded approvingly, leaning back and taking a swig from his beer. Sora booted up the show, took his hit, and then turned to hand it over to Riku but stilled as he noticed that Riku was watching him with a lazy smile, one arm draped over the back of the couch while the other held his beer at the ready. The focused gaze made Sora feel self-conscious...was he doing something embarrassing without meaning to? “What?” he couldn’t help but blurt out after a few seconds had passed, but no answer was given; Riku’s stare grew more intense, almost arrogantly commanding him to not look away. The tension was brief, however, because a knock sounded at the door and Sora jumped to his feet, tripping over himself to answer it. Upon bringing the pizza back to where they were settled, he saw Riku loading them another bowl as if the previous moment hadn’t happened, and the brunette was more than willing to follow his lead. Maybe he’d just been spacing out. 

“You know,” Riku spoke without looking up, while Sora set the box on the table and grabbed his own beer. “I’m surprised you didn’t go check to see if your lady wanted to join us for pizza.” Sora’s hand stilled, hovering over the first slice of pizza. 

“Well, she’s been in a bad mood all night,” he began lamely, but knew that wasn’t the full reason. Unfortunately, once he’d started speaking as he thought, he couldn’t stop himself in time before he let the rest of his reasoning spill forth. “And...I mean, I dunno, I don’t really ever hang out without her anymore. It’s kinda...nice to hang out with just you. You’re really awesome.” He beamed up at the silver-haired man beside him, going with his words rather than being embarrassed by them. He didn’t want it to seem like he was badmouthing Kairi, but...it was true; she was almost always glued to his side. And Riku WAS awesome, making Sora crave his friendship as soon as they’d met. Hopefully the man in question wouldn’t read too far into what he’d said. Riku, on his part, blinked owlishly for a moment before letting a soft smile settle over his features. 

“Okay, Sora,” he said with much more sincerity than had been present in his tone before. “What would you want to do if you were hanging out with your best friends?” The brunette was glowing inside; Riku was willing to be friends just like that, and it was like being asked to sit with the cool kids in grade school or something. 

“Ya know, it’s been a while,” he confessed, unsure of what to propose they do. “What would YOU do if you were hanging out with your best friend?” Those clear, glowing eyes pinned Sora for a second as another smirk bloomed. 

“I bet I can beat you in a race to getting wasted,” Riku challenged suddenly, and Sora’s competitive nature joined with his eagerness to prove himself to the silverette and had him practically bouncing in his seat with excitement. 

“You’re on!” he said confidently, then paused. “Um, what did you have in mind?” A bark of laughter came from the taller man before he reached over to tousle Sora’s hair playfully. 

“Have another pipe?” Riku asked rather than answer, and Sora jumped to his feet. 

“Rox has one in his room. Want me to grab it?” Riku nodded, sending Sora skipping off toward his roommate’s door. He grabbed the piece he was looking for off of Roxas’ desk and exited quickly, shutting the door behind him. Lucky he and Axel hadn’t decided to come back here to consummate their relationship or whatever, Sora thought vaguely; it would be a LOT more awkward to hang out with Riku if there were people having crazy sex feet away. He handed the glassware to Riku as soon as he was able to reach, noting that the man had loaded the first bowl again during his absence. 

“Here’s the race,” Riku began, beginning to pack some of the finely ground weed into the second pipe. “Chug a beer, smoke your bowl, chug a beer, chug another beer. First person to touch the third empty to the table wins.” Sora nodded, silently agreeing with the course. “Obviously, you have to completely finish the bowl and all three beers,” Riku added with a sharp look at Sora, who scoffed dismissively. 

“What do we get it we win?” the brunette asked instead, running a hand through his chestnut spikes of hair. Riku looked at him thoughtfully. 

“What do you want?” he asked curiously, and it took Sora a second to think of his answer. 

“Loser sleeps on the floor,” he decided, and Riku looked surprised. 

“Deal,” he said, then suddenly looked suspiciously at him. “Are you planning to just go to your bed if you lose?” Sora couldn’t contain his laughter, as the idea took him by surprise. 

“Never,” he reassured the silver-haired man. “I’m no cheater.” Riku looked pleased, nodding before picking up two handfuls of bottles from the case and passing some to Sora. 

“Open ‘em now, then we’ll go. Ready?” Sora popped off the tops of his bottles, shooting a wide smile towards Riku. 

“Ready.”


	33. Chapter Thirty-Three

With a groan, Roxas returned to consciousness slowly. His head was killing him. He was seated on a hard chair, somewhere he couldn’t place, as the room was pitch black save for the harsh light shining directly down onto him. There was something wet and sticky on the side of his face, but when he tried to bring his hand up to wipe it away, he found himself unable to move it. His wrists were held firmly behind him, secured around the back of the chair so tightly that the frame was digging into the backs of his shoulders and elbows. He began to struggle, quickly realizing that each ankle was also secured to a leg of the chair, and that there didn’t seem to be a weak point in any of his bonds. After several futile minutes of pushing the limits of his ability for movement, Roxas slumped back, catching his breath. It was then that a voice spoke from the shadows. 

“There now, boy. All this struggling is pointless. You won’t be departing until we’ve had our little chat.” The voice was rough, gravelly, deep...Roxas would have been able to identify it, he was sure, if he had ever heard the man speak before. The stranger was circling him, edges of black material visible when he stepped too close to the circle of light surrounding the captive blonde. What was he doing here? Who was this man, what did he want, and- oh Gaia, where was Axel? “So you are starting to realize...what you lost - oh, but not for good,” the man continued, voice too sinister to be even marginally comforting. “You could have it all back and more, nothing is too far from my reach. I’m simply asking for your compliance.” 

“Real fucking funny way of asking,” Roxas spat defiantly, finding his voice once the very real panic at not knowing what had happened to the redhead hit him. The man tsked at him. 

“Such language. Feckless youth, you don’t understand what a gift I’m offering you,” the voice chided as it revolved around him. “The arrangements for our meeting were made necessary by your refusal in more peaceful settings. Now, you can be brought to understand reason.” Roxas’ eyes widened as he realized who must be on the other side of the shadows. Not just some lackey, then, but the man himself- 

“Xehanort,” he hissed, beginning to fight against his confines once more. “I thought I told your thugs I’m not interested in being someone’s pet.” Xehanort chuckled grimly, and then stepped forward into the light. He was older, past his prime, with a bald head and crazy, gleaming eyes. His hands were crossed behind the small of his back as he paced forward, black floor-length coat billowing behind him as he went. 

“I’m afraid my companions may have given you the wrong impression of what I’m looking for, and I hope to correct that. You wouldn’t be kept prisoner, no. I’d merely be housing you here for security. If you want accommodations elsewhere, I have several apartment buildings in the area. My men can bring you anything you could want or need, and they can keep you secure.” 

“Still a prisoner, no matter how nice the cell,” Roxas snarled. Xehanort shrugged, unfazed by his vehemence. 

“Call it what you like, but I’d prefer ‘employee’. I would make sure you had anything you asked for; electronics, drugs...company,” and his voice took on a venomous, menacing voice. “Your friend has become more trouble than he’s worth. Even Reno can’t intercede on his behalf any longer. But instead of punishment, I could give him to you. To make your housing more...suited to your tastes,” he slyly added, and Roxas felt sick. He was threatening Axel, and that was almost enough to make him cave, but he didn’t think Axel would be thanking him for agreeing to trap them both together indefinitely as prisoners to a crime boss. The man continued, sounding as disinterested as he would be discussing the weather, “You’re a valuable asset, Roxas, and one I don’t plan to let slip from my grasp. You will work for me, and it doesn’t really matter to me if you do that work as my employee with everything you could ask for at your fingertips, or as my prisoner in a cell while I use the screams of your friend to motivate you to do what I ask.” Roxas’ struggling ended instantly. A sadistic gleam entered Xehanort’s eyes and he stalked forward until he was standing over Roxas, gazing down at him with teeth bared in a sort of grin. “Oh yes, I can see that route would be extremely effective. You would hold out on me until your last breath if you were the only one facing danger.” His hand shot out, encircling Roxas’ throat as suddenly as a striking snake, and began squeezing the life from him. Roxas thrashed ineffectually, but was still powerless as he began to feel lightheaded and his vision began to darken around the edges. The man held him for another few seconds and then released him just as abruptly with a slow laugh. Roxas gasped for air, coughing spasmodically as he fought his way out of the blackness trying to swallow him, and glared hatefully at the man. “Yes, I can see you’d fight me in every way you could, your bravery isn’t in doubt. When it comes to the life of another, though...how long do you think you’d last if I had someone beat that red-headed friend of yours in front of you? Or if I had him tortured in a room adjacent to yours, so you could hear him screaming but couldn’t see what was being done? How long do you suppose it would take until you begged me to stop?” Roxas went pale, trying to come up with something defiant to say and failing miserably as he shook his head to rid himself of the imagined sounds of Axel’s scream. Instead of waiting for a reply, Xehanort straightened up and gave him a smile. “I’ll return soon, and hopefully by then you’ll agree that being in my favor can be much more advantageous than trying to fight against me.” Then he strode away into the encircling shadows, leaving Roxas alone with his thoughts. Really just variations of one thought, echoing in his mind endlessly; what happened to Axel? 

Did they have Axel; rather, ‘where’ did they have Axel, since it was safe to assume they took him as well. Especially with what Xehanort had said. Roxas tested the limits of the restraints on his wrists, his ankles; there was no weakness he could find. 

What had they DONE to Axel? The redhead hadn’t been in the best shape the last time he’d seen him; unconscious, with some thug’s knife to his throat. Xehanort had said he’d become too much trouble to keep around, but surely if they wanted to use him as an incentive they’d be keeping him unharmed for the time being...right? He tried to use his torso to scoot his chair forward, attempting to see if he could make his way to one of the walls; as it tipped precariously, he realized that if he fell, he’d either dislocate a shoulder or slam his head into concrete flooring, so he gave up that idea. 

Then a new thought needled it’s way into the cloud of panic over Axel, which chilled him deeply; how long would it be before anyone even realized they were gone? Everyone he hung out with regularly had been there when he had left with Axel, and they had all known what Axel had been planning. It would be logical for them to assume the pair would have gone somewhere to be alone together when they didn’t come home. Once the various groups separated, how long would it take before they talked to one another and realized that Axel and Roxas hadn’t come home at all? Even still, the two could be assumed to have gotten a hotel, chosen to skip class and work, been ignoring their missed messages in the face of new love...it could be days before anyone got really worried. That wouldn’t even take how much time it would take to locate them into consideration...if they were even able to. Police involvement wouldn’t help- in fact, it might just alert Xehanort that people were looking for them. His shoulders slumped, and he bowed his head in defeat. 

Roxas was left alone to torment himself with his own thoughts until he finally, gratefully, slipped into unconsciousness again.


	34. Chapter Thirty-Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the replacement device I received has a non functioning keyboard 🙄 delayed posts until new new device, but they will still be coming! Never worry 🤗
> 
> As always, thanks for reading.

Something was wrong. Something was really, really wrong. 

Ven sat bolt upright, at three twenty-eight in the morning from a dead sleep, knowing that the time for rest was over and that he had received a call to action. He just...didn’t know what it was. He looked around, trying to asses his own situation first. Dark, quiet, unfamiliar, soft breathing nearby. Oh, right, he’d left Roxas’ place with Aqua and Terra, and the three of them had stayed up talking until they’d all fallen asleep where they sat. Being with the pair made him feel like they were old friends who had a lot to catch up on rather than new aquaintences he was just getting to know. He brushed aside the thought as he silently stood and looked first at Aqua and then Terra; both seemed perfectly fine and were sleeping soundly, despite Terra’s snores. Next, he pulled out his phone. 

Tuesday 3:31 A.M. 

You: hey, man, I know your prob asleep but 911 can you lmk when you see this? 

Roxas didn’t reply, but he had assumed that would be the case when he sent the message; he just needed to try. Ven stepped away from his sleeping friends and began to pace. Now that he thought about it, there wasn’t really that much he could do at this time of night; it would be reasonable for everyone to be asleep right now, but...he felt so antsy, so anxious, he knew he couldn’t wait. He pulled his phone back out. He still hadn’t gotten Demyx’s number, but he had Sora’s. Another text, and Ven was slightly more hopeful about getting a response if only because he didn’t know Sora’s phone habits. 

Tuesday 3:32 A.M. 

You: hey you awake? Probably gonna head back 

There. If Sora was awake or woke to the message, he would reply to that, but it didn’t come across as panicked. He waited a few more minutes, drifting back and forth across Aqua’s silent living room, but when Sora didn’t reply either, Ventus decided he’d walk back and try the door. There was a possibility that Sora would have left it open; he didn’t know if Ven would come back there. He gave Aqua on last, lingering look before he strode to the door, opening and shutting it as quietly as possible as he sipped out into the night. The air felt too still for his fraying nerves. Too quiet, too peaceful. Like an animal before an oncoming storm, he felt his heart rate pick up at the impending sense of danger. The lights were off in Roxas’ apartment, but Ven had a stroke of luck when the door opened for him. He tiptoed in, scanning the dark room as he entered, and felt a wave of relief upon seeing two forms cuffed together on the couch, but was immediately disappointed when he stepped closer and saw it was Sora and Aqua’s friend Riku. That stopped him short; wasn’t the dude’s girlfriend in the other room? Hoping to help avoid a screaming fit in a few hours, he gently shook the brunette’s shoulder. 

“Fuck off, Kai, I’m the Chosen One,” Sora mumbled, rolling away from the touch to bury his face more securely into the silver-haired male’s neck. Ven’s eyes flicked up to see if the movement had disturbed Riku, but the taller man was still snoring gently, a faint smile on his lips. Ven tried again more firmly, whispering loudly into the brunette’s ear. 

“Yo, Sora, wake up,” he hissed while giving another shake to his shoulder. This time, Sora lifted his head with a groan and looked around blearily. 

“Roxas?” he asked with a frown, then rubbed his eyes. “No, Ven, what’s up?” Ventus looked pointedly at Riku and then jerked his head over his shoulder towards the kitchen. Once the brunette had followed his gaze to see the silver-haired man underneath him, he gave a quiet, strangled sound and scooted away, which ended up with him falling off the couch and landing ungracefully on the floor. Once he’d recovered himself, the pair into the kitchen, Sora yawning and stumbling after him. 

“Did Roxas and Axel come back here?” the blonde blurted in a hurried whisper as soon as they’d moved a great enough distance away. “Something’s wrong, man, it’s crazy but I just woke up feeling like something wasn’t right and...what?” Ven cut himself short when Sora began chuckling softly and then offered him a sympathetic smile. 

“Nothing’s wrong, Ven, they’re just out enjoying each other, I’m absolutely sure. I don’t think they came here, but Riku and I crashed,” Sora’s cheeks grew red before he shrugged. “Did you check his room?” Ven was up and bounding away almost before Sora had finished speaking, however the room was empty and untouched, with no clue as to its owner’s whereabouts. When he returned to the living room, he found Sora standing before the couch, looking like he was trying to find the best place to sit without disturbing the silverette. Ven walked over, laid a hand on his shoulder, then leaned close to whisper. 

“They’re not here. Could I get Demyx’s number from you?” Sora nodded blankly, handing his phone over before apparently deciding that snuggling on the couch was still the best place to sleep and moving to lay down again. Ven tightened his grip; Sora was still drunk. Oh. That explained a lot. “Nah man, lets go to bed,” he said gently, pulling back a bit on the shoulder under his hand, but Sora shrugged him off with a small sound of frustration. 

“No I promised! Not going to bed,” the brunette pouted, again trying to get back on the couch, so Ven guided him to the other end. 

“Fine, fine, but at least put your head here,” Ven grumbled, helping Sora to collapse with his head on the opposite armrest from Riku’s. Then he opened Sora’s phone contacts, copying Demyx’s number into his own phone before leaving the brunette’s device on the coffee table. He didn’t exactly want to hang out beside the pair of inebriated sleepers, so without any better ideas, he headed towards Roxas’ room. 

Tuesday 3:32 A.M. 

You: hey you awake? It’s Ven 

He fiddled with his phone for a moment longer as he waited. He was willing to bet Demyx was his best chance on someone who might be awake and could get to Roxas, and unless he was about to start cleaning his brother’s room, he needed to something with his anxious hands. Another minute and he was eyeing the bedside table and it’s clutter when his phone went off. 

Tuesday 3:34 A.M. 

469-644-3372: Ven? Something better b seriously wrong dude 

You: um, I’m sorta hoping somethings NOT wrong. Rox is there with Axel, right? Can you get Roxas to call me ASAP? 

There was a pause, and with every passing second the feeling of dread grew inside his heart. A voice in his head began to whisper, reminding him of other times he’d had this feeling. He stood, hands beginning to shake, before the text even came through. 

Tuesday 3:35 A.M. 

469-644-3372: not here. Soras? 

You: that’s where I’m at. Can you call Axel for me? 

469-644-3372: sure. Is everything okay? 

Ventus was beside himself now, knowing Roxas wasn’t somewhere he couldn’t be found easily. The reasonable part of his brain reminded him that it was the middle of the night and they were probably asleep, but his fear could not be shaken. It was another infinite moment before Demyx returned. 

Tuesday 3:36 A.M. 

469-644-3372: no answer, straight to vm. 

469-644-3372: what’s going on? 

Before Ven could form the words to reply, his phone began to ring in his hand. He quickly smashed the green symbol to accept the call before it could wake anyone up and was speaking into it before it was fully to his ear. “Dem, I know it sounds dumb, but I woke up with a bad feeling and I can’t get ahold of Roxas. It doesn’t really seem great that I can’t find him.” He heard quiet voices muttering distantly before Demyx’s voice came on. 

“Hey, man, they’re probably just like, at a hotel or something. It’s the middle of the night,” the taller blonde sighed, seeming more at ease hearing Ven’s explanation. Ven let out a huff. 

“The last time this happened, Roxas had fallen off the roof as a kid and broken his collarbone. I KNOW something is wrong, Demyx!” His voice has risen as he’d spoken, until he’d nearly shouted the other blonde’s name. More muttering from the other line, and then a new voice came on. 

“Ventus, it’s Zexion. Can I propose a solution?” The calm, measured tone was reassuring, and Ventus took a breath. 

“I’m listening,” he said tensely, and the slate-haired male continued in a soothing voice. 

“Let’s pick a time in the morning when it would be reasonable to expect someone to be awake. If we can wait until that time, Demyx and I will personally round up everyone we can and go find them. Do you think you can do that?” It was a reasonable solution. It would give him a time to focus on. It came with an offer of help. 

It shouldn’t have been so hard to agree to. But it was. 

“Yeah,” Ven eventually said glumly, feeling like he was making the wrong choice but unable to come up with an alternative that didn’t sound crazy. “Is ten okay?”


	35. Chapter Thirty-Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are about to get a little...um..violent by next chapter. If you are following and feel like you need a chapter summary, let me know!

Red. Red. Everything was a soothing, misty red. 

Reno spared barely a glance for the young man who’d come to pass along the message. Either he hadn’t read the message, which seemed unlikely, or he was too new or too stupid to understand what it meant, which seemed to be all Reno had to work with lately. New, stupid, incompetent, headstrong, and grossly inadequate for what he needed. Needed NOW. Reno understood what the message meant. He knew it meant he needed to set his plan in motion immediately, even if he’d only really just begun getting everything in place. He might be too late anyway, already. That’s what the message had read between the lines. Too late, too late. The words echoed in his head, scraping like broken glass, and Reno growled. 

“You and all those first year guys get on the road, yo. I need someone in contact with Zurg, and Randall over in Monstropolis, and I need them there an hour ago. Someone also go to that idiot Hades. Get verbal confirmation of support and as many guys as they will send with you. Have everyone stop by Rude first, yo, he’s got new phones for you. Trash the ones you have.” Reno finally turned to look at the kid, who was still standing there like a fucking idiot. Red. Too late. His patience snapped. “What the FUCK are you standing here for!? Get fucking moving!” Reno roared, clenched fists slamming onto the desk in front of him. The guy jumped about a foot in the air before dashing from the room in a panicked blur. The redhead glared after him, then straightened back up after he’d gathered his self-control. He didn’t have time for anger, he didn’t have time for their fear. He needed to go talk to Rude. 

With that thought in mind, Reno left his office in long strides, walking as quickly as he could without drawing more attention himself than usual. Rude was offsite, in a small warehouse Reno had purchased a while ago. He had been preparing for his takeover for quite some time now, even if at first it was little more than a ridiculous dream and the warehouse was nearly bare. Now, it was a pristine and well-stocked base of command for their actions located less than a block away from the casino. He headed towards the employee garage, keying his card through a few doors on his way. Xehanort would know he was leaving, but wouldn’t know why. Reno was sure Xehanort expected him to come begging for leniency, but he’d known the moment he saw that outside men had been hired that his boss was unwilling to hear him out this time. Axel was as good as dead if he didn’t act fast. The blonde, too. Although maybe that one was considered useful, full of potent, no history of mistakes within the organization. Reno didn’t want to think about it. 

The trip to the warehouse was spent pushing away the encroaching thoughts, and it wasn’t until Rude’s normally stoic face was staring at his from the doorway that he cracked. 

“Rude, yo...they’ve got Axel.” Suprise flitted across his partner’s face for a brief second before his normal, straightforward nature took over again. 

“Not our people, obviously,” the man stated gruffly, turning towards a computer display behind him and clicking into a document that held a list of names along with information below. “We’re only missing three of our usual men, and-“ Reno cut him off, impatient. 

“Outside hire. The boss has him and his little boyfriend and we’ve gotta figure out where immediately. Do you have the blueprints readily available?” Rude nodded, minimizing the first document and pulling up another program. 

“We can go over them now. I’ve been looking; I think it’s safe to assume they wouldn’t be in the main areas of the casino or the hotel.” Too late, too late. Why the fuck had Axel decided to start messing around with the tiny little hacker or whatever he was? Why NOW? Reno had had the foresight to install a punching bag in a corner of the warehouse; he’d expected long nights of frustrated planning and taking the time to ensure all of Xehanort’s contacts were under his own control, but whatever, it was there. While Rude pulled up different schematics and compared them to one another, Reno began working over the unyielding leather. Soothing, misty red and the rhythmic thudding of his fists. Xehanort didn’t know what was coming for him; he’d looked down on Reno for too long as some sort of glorified dog and had long forgotten to be wary of his bite. He was so absorbed in his actions that it took Rude a few tries to get his attention. “Yo, Reno, look at this.” Reno finally registered the words, pausing his ministrations to join his fellow at the terminal. Several different blueprints were pulled up, and Rude was cycling between them. Reno couldn’t see anything unusual, however; just the parts of the building he was aware of. 

“I don’t have the patience for guessing games right now, yo,” Reno growled, using his hands to support him as he leaned forward above the desk. Rude nodded, bringing one of the pages to the front. It looked to be a grid of the electrical lines that had been run, and included both main buildings as well as the large underground expansion and the parking garage across the street. 

“Do you see these lines that are run over here?” Rude pointed to a series of lines that went from the expansive underground structure, seemingly detouring to side significantly before reaching up again for the parking garage. Seemed useless to run a line underground for so long before bringing it back to the surface, but Reno was no architect and it seemed like the lines ultimately powered the garage, so there didn’t really seem to be anything usual. Before his temper could flare back to life, however, Rude had cycled to the next blueprint, this one looking like water lines or sewage. Again, the lines made the strange divergence before routing to the garage. Reno was starting to see what Rude was now, but the third blueprint was what confirmed it; it would appear based on the third plan that duct work stretched off from the underground structure to just dead end into the ground way off course under the parking garage. 

“That doesn’t seem right,” he said with a little enthusiasm. “What are we thinking, another underground structure? One that even our clearance doesn’t reach?” Rude nodded, bringing up a final page. This one was of the doors, rooms, and hallways of the underground facility, specifically floor L13. The last room at the end of the hallway was much larger than the other rooms, and the back wall had oddly been left out of the plan. 

“Looks like this is our starting point,” Rude grunted, indicating the area. “Now the only problem is getting into the heart of the buildings. Even then, we have no idea what the addition holds; we’re gonna be going in blind if we do get that far.” 

“Hey, just like old times, yo,” Reno said, looking over at his longtime companion. He was veiled in misty red, looking at Reno as if he was unsure what to do next. Too late. Reno bared his teeth in a manic smile. “Lets just figure out how we’re gonna do this.”


	36. Chapter Thirty-Six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SUPER IMPORTANT 
> 
> so I messed up, wonderful readers. I didn’t finalize posting chapter thirty-one until now, and it was IMPORTANT. Please, please go back and read it before you read this, if for no other reason than it is my first violence-warning chapter and if you can’t handle that, you DEFINITELY can’t handle this. 
> 
> I’m so, so sorry everyone, and I hope it hasn’t disrupted your enjoyment of the story too significantly.
> 
> As always thanks for reading ❤️
> 
> Big warning about the chapter you are about to read. If you feel you need a summary instead, just lmk.
> 
> Also also... please don’t hate me. There is more story to come, please don’t ditch it bc of this! 😅😳

A banging, rumbling sound jolted Roxas awake. His neck gave a sharp twinge as it protested his sleeping position, but he gave it little attention as his eyes strained to see what was coming towards him from the shadows. Slowly, an old television on a wheeled cart like something found in a grade-school classroom appeared, pushed by another figure in a long, black coat. This time, it was a younger male with silver hair that framed his face and fell to just past his shoulders. Roxas glared wordlessly as the man seemingly ignored him, grabbing the power cord and carrying it back out of view before returning and fiddling with the monitor. 

“Just so you know,” the man spoke offhandedly, as if Roxas was lounging rather than tied to a chair, “this is just to help you see things differently. No one will be monitoring you, and no one will hear you if you call out. Someone will return later, but I would very seriously doubt that it would be any time soon.” He glanced at the blonde as if making sure he’d been heard, then shrugged. “Knowing that won’t change anything, but it may give you a little peace of mind.” Roxas had maintained furious silence, but as the man turned to leave, a sense of panic struck him. 

“What is this?” he called out as disdainfully as he could. The man paused, one foot already out of the circle of light cast from above, and looked back over his shoulder to shoot Roxas a malicious smirk. He pointed a remote towards the TV, powering the machine on at the same time he spoke. 

“Watch and find out,” he taunted before taking the final step that would remove him from the blonde’s sight and disappearing through the unseen door with a bang. Roxas, however, had focused all of his attention on the screen the moment it came on, because an all too familiar redhead was displayed on it. 

Axel was strapped to a flat steel surface that looked almost like an operating table. Thick leather restraints held him to the table at his wrists and ankles, while straps across his thighs and chest ensured he was unable to move himself even marginally. There was another figure on screen with him, a man with long hair so blonde it was only a few steps away from a grayish white. This man was standing with his back to the camera, doing something to one of Axel’s pinned forearms. He stepped back, depositing a bottle and what looked like a cotton pad somewhere off-screen, and then returned to Axel’s side. Roxas was confused, stomach churning anxiously, for a second before the man flicked a lighter he must have picked up to life. He touched it to Axel’s arm, and an unnaturally square patch of the redhead’s skin burst into flames. Roxas yelled out before he could stop himself, struggling against the ropes that held him back wildly, but it was painfully ineffectual, and Roxas understood what was happening with disgusting clarity; he was going to be forced to watch Axel being tortured in front of him without being able to be seen or heard or to do anything about it. He heard Axel’s voice come through the speakers like a shot to the heart. 

“That’s nothing,” Axel gasped, baring his teeth in a crazed grin. “Played with fire a lot as a kid, burns are no big deal.” 

“I know,” the voice was calm and cool before the figure threw a bucket of water over the redhead. “The salt water should help with that.” An inhuman-sounding roar filled with agony tore its way from Axel’s chest as he writhed and twisted as much as his bonds would allow. The sounds echoed through the room, and were replaced with labored panting as Axel regained control of himself. He spat, nearly hitting the figure’s booted foot. 

“Come on, you can do better than that. Took me by surprise is all,” he said cockily, but his twitching muscles gave away his words as bravado. “Go for round two, I bet I won’t even flinch.” The other man tsked at him. 

“You’re all wet now, I’d never be able to set you ablaze,” the voice chided as he stalked forward. “No, I’ve got something I don’t think you’re ready for, despite your bravado.” He stopped a few feet in front of Axel, spreading his hands wide in a dramatic gesture as he spoke. “You see, I’m a scientist. A chemist, to be precise. And I’ve been developing some compounds I’m very excited to have a test subject for. Of course I jumped on the opportunity when they offered it to me. Do you want to hear about my experiment, or just participate, as a lab rat would? It makes no difference to me either way.” He turned, pulling something previously out of view into frame, and Roxas felt his stomach drop sickeningly. It was a metal cart on wheels, the kind found in labs and hospitals, laden with several different surgical-looking tools and a rack housing a few rows of small vials of different colors and viscosities. 

“Why fucking not?” Axel barked out a harsh laugh with the words, looking scornfully at the man. “I’m not really too afraid of what a few little vials are going to do to me.” 

“Oh, but you should be,” the man promised confidently, picking up a clipboard from the tray and comparing what was on the table to whatever was written on the paper. “I’ve been researching into several different areas for our illustrious employer. Ways to cause pain but no damage. Ways to paralyze and incapacitate while leaving mental faculties intact. Ways to withdraw information we are looking for from the most close-lipped of subjects. Human test subjects have been rare as of late, and I’m very much looking forward to seeing how these compounds work in practice. You will share your feedback with me, won’t you?” As he’d been talking, the man had been in front of the tray doing something that Roxas had been unable to see, but he turned back to Axel as he finished with a syringe in hand that was full of an ominous yellow liquid. 

“Okay, alright, enough,” Roxas shouted out, looking around. He knew what the man who’d left him with the TV had said, but that was just to add to his fear and anxiety, right? Someone would be listening in so that they would know if he caved and was ready to accept their offer. Right? “Make them stop. I give.” 

“Subcutaneous injection, compound One, right forearm,” the man’s voice sounded on-screen, obviously for documentation purposes, before he turned a sneer at Axel. “This may pinch a bit,” he said with malicious glee before inserting the needle into Axel’s skin. The redhead’s reaction was instantaneous. He began to thrash wildly, and every muscle and tendon Roxas could see was strained to its limits. His teeth were clenched, face turned away from the blonde, but that soon became an impossible task; he began to yell, but it was an endless stream of profanities that came forth. They tapered off and left Axel panting and twitching, but his lingering cockiness made Roxas’ heart ache. 

“Note in your file; worse than a bug bite, but less painful than stepping on a lego,” he snorted, and the figure beside noted something into his file, though Roxas was certain it wouldn’t include Axel’s barb. In fact, he didn’t give Axel or his words any consideration at all as he began preparing for the next injection. 

“Fucking enough already, if you want to deal then get the fuck in here,” Roxas furiously demanded of the empty room. “HEY! Someone! You win, alright!?” His shouting ended as quickly as it had begun, for the blonde on the TV had already started up again. 

“-right elbow juncture,” Roxas heard the man finish as he stepped forward with a lavender dose this time around. Roxas felt himself break out in a cold sweat. Why wouldn’t they just come claim their prize? He’d given in! “This one reacts with your blood, so it should be much more thorough than the last compound. If my work does as it should, this one will be the one that makes you scream.” Axel’s pupils dilated as he watched the needle inch closer to his vein, but froze instead of fighting this one. Roxas imagined a torn vein from moving with the needle in it and shuddered violently. This wasn’t real, this wasn’t happening. He tried to convince himself, as he watched the needle sink in, that this was some sort of act. They’d found someone who looked like Axel to play the part, or even Axel himself, threatened to act it out to make Roxas fold. He would have gladly taken the betrayal of Axel flipping and deciding to work for Xehanort himself, tricking the blonde into it as well, over the look that crossed Axel’s face as the chemicals hit his system. It was something Roxas knew he would never forget, not if he lived a thousand lives. Fear and pain blew his eyes wide, and his expression twisted horrifically, his mouth opening automatically to give the twisted scientist exactly what he had wanted. A split second that lasted an eternity went by, and several things happened at once. The ashen blonde on screen leaned forward eagerly, hand poised over his clipboard as he anticipated noting the results. Axel’s eyes hardened to steel and burned in a way Roxas could only describe as manic; he clenched his jaw and bit into his lower lip so hard that blood began to flow freely, but the only sound that escaped him was a strangled growl. And Roxas was violently ill, barely able to tear his eyes from Axel long enough to turn his head before he emptied the contents of his stomach. He continued heaving, but his eyes were pulled back to the screen. 

“Hmm. Interesting, I suppose,” the scientist sighed in disappointment, making a note on one page and then flipping to another sheet to write something lengthier. Axel still didn’t seem to be able to speak, body spasming occasionally, but was giving the man a stare that honestly struck a note of fear into Roxas despite not being the target himself. “Perhaps a control would be necessary here; I’m not sure if your response is limited due to willfulness or a weakness in the chemical makeup.” He continued muttering to himself, but a much colder, more terrifying sound had begun; Axel had started to laugh. It began as a weak, inconsistent chuckle that quickly grew into a loud, uproarious sound that raised the hairs on the nape of Roxas’ neck. The other man was also clearly disturbed by it; he turned sharply, nearly dropping his notes in his haste. Axel’s smile was more teeth than heart, but when he spoke he sounded bored by the ashen blonde. 

“I know you people; I know how this place works. I don’t have information you want. I don’t have anything you need. I didn’t fuck something up and am now being punished. And Xehanort,” Axel spat the name with such disdain that the scientist took an involuntary step back, “doesn’t care about any of his employees enough that he would hand me over to you just for the sake of your ‘experiments’ or whatever. Nor would he waste the effort of having me tortured without something in it for him. So what does he want?” Axel gave the man a long, piercing look before he finished. “You’ve got him somewhere, you’re forcing him to watch this. Aren’t you?” When the scientist shook his head and began to stammer out a denial, Axel ignored him, instead speaking louder as his eyes swept the room. Roxas imagined the camera was hidden, as Axel’s eyes never met his, but his intent was clear. “Rox, don’t let this get in your head, do whatever you have to do to get out of here. I’m nothing in this, they’re just using me to mess with you. Don’t fight for me here, just say whatever you need to to get the fuck-“ Axel’s words were overshadowed as the other man gathered himself and dashed back to his workspace, getting a syringe with red contents and practically shouting to be heard over the redhead. 

“Subject hostile, control substance X being administered to gauge reactiveness, subcuta-“ Axel raised his voice as well, overpowering the man again. 

“Don’t watch, don’t listen, Roxy. I’ll do what I can to keep my mouth shut over here, but you know me.” A harsh laugh barked out of him as the red liquid entered his arm, and then his body snapped taunt, his muscles tensed so hard it was a wonder nothing snapped. He ground his teeth together, rolling his head to glare hatefully at the man with the syringe. “You’re...a shit...chemist,” he ground out before another wave of pain seemed to go through him, and he whipped his head back and forth on the table in an effort to control himself. A fresh trail of blood began from his lip, and Roxas could see several groups of muscles rippling under his skin in an unnatural way. 

Axel tried. He held out for a while, doing everything he could in his limited capacity to try to distract himself from the agony he was clearly experiencing. It was painfully obvious that he was trying to limit what Roxas would be subjected to viewing, but eventually it became too much and the sound that left him destroyed something deep inside the captive blonde. 

To give Axel credit, though, he’d held back his screams far longer than Roxas had.


	37. Chapter Thirty-Seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HELLO, lovely readers ❤️
> 
> I’m sorry for the abrupt, extended absence, I had some things come up in real life and haven’t been able to make writing a priority, but I am back 😅🤗
> 
> Updates are coming for everything, so be ready! I will hopefully be right back to the frequent updates on all three (There’s An App For That, Discord Required, and Got It Memorized?, if any of you are enjoying this but have yet to stumble across the other two 😜).
> 
> Thank you for your patience with me, and although this chapter is a little short, just know the end is near and things are going to be escalating quickly 😅
> 
> As always, thanks for reading.

At ten in the morning, on the dot, a loud, incessant ringing jolted Demyx awake. He groaned tiredly, stretching out his arm to blindly reach for his device, but it ended on its own before a smooth, cool voice began speaking. 

“Good morning, Ventus. I- no, no they didn’t. I would have made sure to let you know if they had, we- yes, I am, I’ll start making calls while Demyx gets up and- it’s alright. Ven, it will be alright. You know we’ll all do everything in our power to help.” Silence stretched on for a moment, and Demyx was almost back to sleep, when the voice came back. “Yes, you start with them, I’ll call Aqua and send her and Terra to you. Then I will start with local hotels. Yes, alright, goodbye.” Quiet returned, but so did a gentle hand on Demyx’s shoulder. Knowing he couldn’t get back to sleep now but still not ready to get up, the blonde gave a little grumble as he rolled over, throwing at arm around Zexion and dragging the man closer so he could curl up around his legs and waist. 

“Couldn’t you have told him we’d be ready in like twenty minutes?” he asked, cracking one eye open to shoot a pointed look up at the slate-haired male. Rather than indulge him, however, Zexion just laughed and ran fingers through his hair. 

“We promised, Demyx. And neither Axel nor Roxas came home, nor have they returned any messages or calls.” Demyx rolled his eyes and groaned again, much louder this time, as he pushed himself upright. 

“Okay, but if we find them having brunch at the Lucky Cat or something, I’m disowning him as a roommate,” Demyx muttered as he slid out of the warm bed, looking for the boxers he’d discarded the night prior. Zexion snorted. 

“I’m going to give you a minute and call Aqua, I’ll be right back,” the slate-haired man said before picking up his own phone from Demyx’s bedside table and walking out of the room. Demyx watched him go with a lazy smile, letting his mind wander to thoughts of last night and the things they’d done that had kept them up for a majority of it. Zexion really was something else. Demyx grabbed a pair of jeans off the floor and yanked them on. Wherever Axel was, he’d better have a decent excuse for kidnapping Roxas on whatever romantic adventure they were on and sending Ven panicking. Maybe they drove out into the woods somewhere to get busy and their car battery died or something, that sounded like an Axel story. He found a shirt he thought was probably clean and pulled it on over his head, then ran a handful of product through his hair before heading downstairs to find his companion. 

“Zexy?” he called softly when he reached the kitchen and heard nothing to indicate a presence, and then headed towards the front door to check outside. Sure enough, when he opened the door, he found the slate-haired man leaning against the porch railing with a cup of coffee in one hand and his other hand holding his phone to his ear. 

“Yeah, and no word from either of them still. Mmhmm. Let’s just discuss assignments in person, we’ll be there in a few.” Demyx slid up behind him, wrapping arms around Zexion’s waist and pulling the shorter man firmly against him. Zexion said goodbye and hung up, then turned in Demyx’s arms so that they were pressed together from chest to thighs. “We should go. We’re all meeting up at Roxas and Sora’s,” he said almost glumly, as if he wished they weren’t. Heat pooled in Demyx’s stomach at the words, and despite knowing they were already promised to be on the way, he couldn’t help but lean down the inches that separated them to kiss Zexion fervently. The slate-haired man pulled back after a moment with a serene smile. “Come on, Dem. There will be plenty of time for that later.” Demyx laughed at the promise and reached down to grab Zexion’s hand. 

“Alright, fine, lets head out,” Demyx agreed, and the pair went back inside to grab their things and lock up. 

It only took them a few minutes to get to Roxas and Sora’s apartment, but they were met with orchestrated chaos when they walked in the front door. The first thing Demyx couldn’t help but notice was Kairi pacing along the length of the couch in quick, tight movements, phone in her hand and a furious look in her eyes. Her lips were pressed together tightly, as if holding herself back from saying what she wanted to whoever was on the other end of the line. Terra and Riku were sitting on the couch, hunched over several papers spread out on the coffee table and muttering to each other, while Sora sat on the floor next to Riku, also on the phone but speaking in a quiet, polite tone. Ven and Aqua were talking quietly in the far corner of the room; Aqua had an outstretched hand on Ventus’s shoulder, clearly trying to console him, while Ven had a stricken expression and looked like he was fighting to contain his panic. Zexion pulled his hand from Demyx’s gently and walked over to Aqua and Ven, which left the blonde hesitating near the doorframe, unsure of how to be helpful. He needed to occupy his hands, though, so he pulled out his phone and frowned down at it. Where the fuck WERE those idiots? Despite being overshadowed by Ven’s fears, the taller blonde’s anxiety was beginning to rise to the surface. One of them should have said something by now. Seeing everyone here starting up a search was making things seem much more serious. Zexion waved him over to where he was standing, and Demyx quickly loped to his side, grateful for direction. When he had broken into their little circle, Ven’s eyes snapped up to meet his, with an expression of someone drowning and looking for help. 

“Sora’s already begun calling nearby places they might have gone to, Terra and Riku are finding the places and their contact information. I’m going to join Sora, and Aqua says it’s looking like Kairi is going to go with her to meet up with one of their uncle’s coworkers. Would you be willing to drive Ven around town to look in places that we can’t call, like parks and wooded areas?” Demyx nodded mutely, feeling at a loss for what to say. Ven was walking towards the door as soon as Demyx’s head had moved, though, so he quickly nodded a farewell towards Zexion and Aqua before he hurriedly followed the shorter blonde out the door. Ven was hesitating at the edge of the parking lot, clearly unsure of which car to walk towards, so Demyx quickly unlocked his car with the button on his keys, causing blinkers to flash and giving Ven direction. Once they were both buckled into their seats and Demyx was backing them out of the spot, he broke the thick silence. 

“Um, do you have any specific places you want to check out? I know of a few places they could have gone to park their car...” Demyx trailed off under the blank stare Ven was giving him, as if he were barely processing the question. 

“Can we start out looking for where they might have gone when they left here? I hate to continue to be the pessimist here, but honestly right now I feel like we should be searching for their car. That would at least give us a starting point that’s an easier target,” Ven asked softly, staring out the window rather than meet Demyx’s surprised look. 

“Dude. Ven, it’s not...it’s Roxas and Axel. You don’t really think something terrible happened to them, do you? We aren’t talking about some weak, useless kids here. Axel’s not exactly small, and I hear tell Roxas used to play with swords.” Demyx threw a look at the smaller blonde to see if his joke had hit home, but Ven didn’t even crack a smile. Instead, he let the silence stretch on, and Demyx started heading towards the nicer side of town. If they were leaving to talk last night, and if he knew Axel as well as he thought, he was willing to bet the redhead would have taken Roxas somewhere public in case things didn’t go well. He knew Axel was already worried he’d pissed Roxas off, and would want the blonde to feel like he could leave at any time. If he was taking Roxas to eat with the intention of also asking him to start dating, Demyx was willing to bet Axel would take him someplace nice downtown. Not that that would help them, but he’d indulge Ventus. If nothing else, maybe they could ask around to see if any of the places remembered them coming in and if they’d heard where they were planning to go. A few more minutes passed before they got into the heart of the downtown district and began to see more traffic and pedestrians. 

“What’s Axel’s car look like?” Ventus murmured, and Demyx gave a brief description as they rolled slowly along the main strip. Most of the places here were shops, salons, an ice cream parlor, a swanky brunch place. He was about to start down one of the side avenues in hopes of finding something more promising, but Ven’s voice broke the silence before he changed course. “What’s that place?” he asked, pointing ahead of them to a small line of people standing outside the doors to the building on the end of the row. Oh shit, yeah, that was actually a good idea. 

“This swanky new sushi restaurant, that may actually be a good spot to check out. There’s public parking around here somewhere,” Demyx trailed off, craning his neck to see around a group of pedestrians crossing the street, behind whom was the entrance to a little lot just a few doors down from the place. When his way was clear, he turned in, immediately looking around for an open spot amidst the early lunchtime crowds, but ended up circling through the rows of cars a few times. Suddenly, Ven threw out an arm in a quick motion for Demyx to stop. 

“Does his car have an old crown sticker on the bumper?” he whispered hoarsely, pointing to a spot to the right, and Demyx felt his blood run cold as his eyes slid over an all-too-familiar vehicle with dents and scratches in all the right places. Cars were stacking up behind them, but Demyx threw the car in park and got out on autopilot, stumbling over his own feet as he staggered to Axel’s car and peered inside. His old blanket in the back, was rumpled up on the floorboard, but nothing really looked out of place. He ignored the horns sounding behind him and tried the handle; it was still locked. He dashed back to his own car, barely noticing Ven’s pained face and palm pressed against the glass as he watched Demyx’s brief search. Without moving his eyes even fractionally to see the look he was sure the shorter blonde was giving him, Demyx threw the car in gear and stomped the gas to start their search for a place to park again. 

“We need to go ask some questions,” he barely managed to say around the thick lump that had suddenly appeared in his throat.


	38. Chapter Thirty-Eight

When Kairi called, he’d wanted to ignore her. He really did. He knew incessant calls from her would only point Xehanort’s attention to her, and he didn’t want to risk her being a blind target if everything went wrong today. She would lose the rest of her family in one fell swoop. That, and he was having an internal meltdown over the information he had just received. The men he’d sent out had all checked in, but it wasn’t with the news Reno had been hoping for. They had all offered support, but only three men had been sent; two from Zurg and one from Randall. That might have helped if they were just looking at a fight, but Rude had run projections and they were looking at simply a lack of bodies to aid in the search of what seemed to be an expansive addition. He ground his teeth together as her second call came in, and he mashed the button to answer it. 

“Phone’s broken, talk later,” Reno growled shortly before hanging up quickly. Then he reached into his pocket, pulled out his new, uncompromised phone, and called her back. 

“Reno, Axel’s gone,” she blurted without preamble, and Reno pinched the bridge of his nose in exasperation. “We’ve got our close friends on the search, but he and Roxas-“ 

“You’re not going to find them, yo,” he growled tightly, fury and fear gripping his heart tightly as he spoke the words aloud. “Things have gone bad, little one. I’m doing my best, here, but...it’s different this time around, yo.” He sighed in resignation, kicking harshly at a nearby chair and sending it crashing backwards. “I’m fucked, princess. They took Axel and his friend long enough ago that we’re starting to run out of time, and I don’t know that I’m gonna have the manpower to find him before- the place we think they’re keeping those guys looks like it’s huge, yo, and I’m only gonna have fourteen bodies to run what’s looking like an extensive, blind search. It’ll be a suicide mission, honey. I’m only telling you so that when we don’t come back...” He trailed off weakly, feeling hopeless, but Gaia be damned if he wasn’t gonna try to get the kid back. He was so caught up in his spiraling thoughts that the sound of Kairi huffing furiously into the phone took him by surprise. 

“When are we making the move?” she demanded, and Reno rolled his eyes at the brat. 

“The rest of the guys will be back in about an hour, we’ll brief everyone, and then we’ll- it doesn’t matter, yo. You just stay safe, stay in crowded places for a while, and don’t forget how much Axel and I both-“ Reno was cut off by a delicate and yet almost dangerous-sounding laugh. 

“I don’t expect you’re running a coup from inside the casino, so you better text me your location,” she interrupted, a hard note in her normally sweet voice, and it took Reno longer than it should have to understand what she meant. 

“Yo, listen here, and listen good. This isn’t a fucking joke, yo. You’re a little girl, and there’s no way I’m gonna-“ 

“I’ve got eight bodies here already searching for them. That will almost double your numbers. I don’t give a fuck what you say, I’m calling them back here and we’re either gonna drive to Oogie’s, or to you, you can choose. Roxas’s brother is here, his roommate, Axel’s roommate, people who care about those two. Help or don’t,” Kairi snarled her rant through the phone, and Reno didn’t have the time to deal with this shit...or deny the additional numbers. He’d figure it out, maybe parties with one of the kids paired with an actual guard... 

“I’ll send you the address, but you all better be ready to follow orders, yo,” he said curtly before he disconnected the call and turned to Rude, who’d been trying his best to pretend he couldn’t hear Reno on the call. “Change of plans, yo,” he said more casually than he felt. Although...now hope was beginning to spark. “Add eight more bodies into the equation. Useless bodies, but bodies nonetheless. Let’s reconfigure the plans, yo, and start getting ready to make our move. And yo, did you get ahold of Mirage yet? She was a long shot, but she knows all the codes.” Rude grunted and turned back towards the computer, while Reno opened a text to his niece. Their little group of wannabe heroes better drive fast.


	39. Chapter Thirty-Nine

There was a brief moment where Riku had to make an effort to keep a smile from forming on his face; this was so reminiscent of their debate last night it was almost comical. Did no one else see that? When Kairi has ended her phone call, she snapped at them all to stop what they were doing and call Demyx and Ven back. Then she began to fill them all in while they waited for the pair to drive, with the blonde’s on speaker phone so she wouldn’t have to waste time explaining it twice. Riku listened in shock as she spoke of a crime syndicate and her uncle and Roxas’ illegal app and the kidnapping. Demyx jumped in, supporting her statement by telling them they’d found Axel’s car. Then Kairi told them about the need for hep in the search, and what was likely happening to their friends with every second that passed. That had turned the conversation into a re-enactment of the previous night. 

Sora, of course, had blindly jumped up and loudly stated that he was obviously going to go, while Zexion asked what they would be up against. Sora yelled that it didn’t matter, while Demyx spoke up, asking if they were going to have to actually fight anyone, or if it was just going to be a search party kind of thing. Then Ven chimed in, and clearly his loud ‘who cares?!’ was aimed at Demyx. Zexion pointed out that none of them were trained fighters, to which Terra countered that he and Ventus had weapons training and reminded him of Riku’s martial arts background. At this point, Kairi got fed up with them again. 

“Those two are our brothers, our roommates, our best friends. Either of those two would do anything for any one of us. If you’re not coming, that’s fine, because yeah this is real danger. But I hope that if you stay you spend the rest of your life thinking about how, in a search, one person can be the answer to finding someone or not. Or you could ask Reno about doing something else to help. Whatever you’re choice, we’re leaving as soon as Ven and Demyx get back.” Riku felt chagrined despite knowing he would be offering to go; Kairi’s words and tone were powerful. Ven laughed dryly over the phone. 

“Tell me if you hear us,” he said almost breathlessly, and everyone in the room strained their ears. At first, there was nothing but silence, but then a burst of squealing tires preceded a roaring engine growing louder by the second. Kairi was closest to the door; she had spun on her heel and yanked it open in a heartbeat, dashing out seconds before the others had followed suit. They made it in time to see Demyx’s car barreling towards them at a ridiculous speed for a small street, before he braked sharply and spun the wheel; tires screamed again as he maneuvered the definitely-not-quality beater like a drifter into the apartment parking lot. They skidded to a halt just before the apartment, and Riku made a note to take Demyx to a driving course someday. If the guy had never been before, he’d consider it his personal mission to correct that. Ven leaned out his open window, adrenaline and desperation fueling him into a manic sort of excitement, and Riku couldn’t help but feel a sense of anticipation grow in him at the sight of the blonde’s expression. 

“What are you waiting for? Who’s driving?” Out of the corner of his eye, the silverette watched Sora lean towards Kairi to whisper before he offered up their car as one. Demyx rolled his eyes before he seemed to square his shoulders. 

“Already here, I might as well be the other. Besides, Axel is family and Roxas is in this whole mess because of me.” At his words, Zexion, who Riku had completely thought would stay behind, walked over to Demyx’s vehicle and got in without a word. Riku turned to Terra and Aqua. 

“You already pointed out I can handle myself, I’m going. I know me and the others wouldn’t judge you for staying, though, despite what Kairi-“ Riku was interrupted by a nine-too-gentle punch to the shoulder from Terra, while Aqua smiled almost pityingly at him. 

“Did you forget what my family is like?“ she asked with a laugh, before Terra followed up. 

“Don’t be stupid, Riku. I’m just surprised Zexion is coming,” the brunette said, cracking his knuckles reflexively. The silver-haired male internally echoed the feeling, a testosterone-driven urge to fight slowly filling him. This was going to be exciting, that was for sure. A part of him always longed for this sort of test to his skills, but he’d never in his life seriously imagined this kind of action ever happening to him. He glanced to where Kairi was opening a car door and Sora was looking at them from the passenger side, hand resting on the handle. Then he looked at Aqua, staring towards where Ven was seated in Demyx’s car, and smirked. 

“Hey Terra, ride with me. We can talk technique on the way.” Terra caught on immediately, and started walking towards where Sora was waiting. 

“Sounds like a plan. See you there, Blue,” he called over his shoulder at Aqua as Riku followed after him, catching up easily and walking the last few feet at his side. 

“This is...actually happening, right?” Riku heard himself whisper to the taller man as if in a daze. Terra laughed sharply once before elbowing him in the side. 

“You got anything better to do today?” he teased, and Riku chuckled before he could help himself. 

“I suppose you’re right,” Riku sighed with mock resignation as they reached a beaming Sora and the three got into the car. Kairi was driving before the last door had shut, heading off and letting Demyx tail her. She drove fast, clearly relying on Demyx continuing to drive like an idiot, and in an effort to calm his nerves and ignore the road, Riku turned to Sora. “Do you guys know more about these people that you could tell us? It would help if we knew what we were going up against.” Before Sora could answer, Kairi spoke up without looking away from her windshield. 

“We only know the basics...they try to keep all that stuff from me. But we really can’t plan for anything until we get to my uncle and he tells us what he needs.” Terra nodded quietly, and Riku gave Sora an expectant look. The rest of their drive was spent with Sora explaining what they knew or had heard, only interrupted when they loaded onto a ferry and paid for the service. Riku would have liked to get out, but with the way Kairi was fidgeting at the wheel, he wouldn’t have been surprised if she left him on the boat if he wasn’t in his seat the second they docked. So instead he listened, and the more he heard, the more his desire for a fight grew. By the time they made it to an old warehouse just past the gaudy casino, Riku was itching to be given his orders and get moving. They waited for the others to park begin them on the side street adjacent to the building before they all got out and followed the petite redhead to the huge door. She pounded on it until it opened to reveal an intimidatingly large man looking down at them. A pause, and then his lips twitched up into a tiny, quick smile. 

“Little Kairi, it’s been a long time.” Kairi gave the man a war some, then pushed her way past him. The man turned to follow her, leaving Riku and the others to enter behind him, as he spoke loudly over his shoulder. “I hope you guys have half an idea what you’re signing yourselves up for.”


	40. Chapter Forty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter, but you can expect the next one to be substantially longer! 😅😬🤭
> 
> As always, thanks for reading.

There was no sound from inside the room when the door was finally opened. The same young man who had entered with the TV pushed his way into the silent room hesitantly. He waved a wisp of silver hair away from his face and then took a step into the darkness, letting the door fall from his hand to bang shut dramatically. The kid had probably just fainted again. He had orders to get him up and to one of the small interrogation rooms, and then to prep him for a meeting with the three big bosses; Ansem, Xemnas, and Xehanort himself, and those men were NOT the kind of people you wanted to keep waiting. He looked into the circle of light and sure enough, the blonde tied to the chair was slumped forward, head hanging limply, eyes closed. The newcomer rolled his eyes, taking a pair of handcuffs from one of the pockets of his standard issue long black coat and walking around to the back of the blonde’s position. Whatever, it made his job easier, at least. He clipped the handcuffs into place before he began untying the unconscious man, just in case he woke up during the process. He was actually a little surprised the blonde didn’t when the ropes around his upper arms went slack and the blonde sagged forward another few inches. Then he crouched down to release his legs, wondering if the kid would be able to stand, or if he’d be forced to drag or even carry him. Ugh. The silverette rose, circling back until he was standing behind the captive once again. He was considering the best way to rouse the man before him when he heard something; it took him a moment to realize it was the blonde’s voice, barely a whisper floating to his ears. He leaned forward curiously, hoping to hear more clearly; he had been so sure the man was unconscious! Was he muttering through some sort of dream, or was he actually awake all along and too weak to even support himself upright? There was a second of quiet, baited breath on his part, before everything went horribly, horribly wrong. 

He had barely a fraction of a second to see blonde, spiky hair whipping towards him before the back of the bound man’s head slammed into his face with incredible, violent force. The room exploded into bright flashes of light surrounded by a growing blackness, and he barely felt himself crumple to the floor. From his position on the floor, he watched the blonde stand, handcuffed hands behind his back not hindering him in the slightest as he rose and took a few steps forward. Then he stepped through his linked hands, rolling his shoulders too loosen them once his hands were in front of him. Shoes approached the silver-haired man on the ground, and then the toe of one prodded him harshly in the ribs. The man heard himself let out a groan, and tried in vain to push himself upright, as he watched the shoes recede towards the metal cart which was abruptly kicked over onto its side. The TV slammed to the floor in an explosion of glass, shards of which skittered over the ground, but the blonde wasn’t even paying attention to the destruction. He was focused on the legs of the cart, kicking at one harshly before he noticed the easy bolts on the interior, holding the lengths of L-shaped metal onto the platforms with simple screws. The man on the floor thought deliriously that they weren’t giving their captives enough credit on their ingenuity. The blonde worked two of the legs free, swinging one experimentally in each of his still-cuffed hands to test his range of motion, before those shoes ominously turned towards the stricken man again. 

He tried to roll away from the blonde as he approached, but his body was responding too sluggishly. Those metal bars were scraping against the ground as the kid stalked towards him, letting the tips grind against the concrete flooring with tiny sparks flaring occasionally behind them. The man was completely silent as he stepped forward and rolled the silverette onto his stomach, facedown on the floor. He closed his eyes, waiting for those bars to rain gown on him, so he blinked them open in surprise when instead a fist in his hair yanked his head back painfully. He groaned loudly before he managed to form a comprehensible word. 

“They’re...going to kill you...once they see this,” he wheezed, feeling his head clear up a tiny bit at the pain. Enough to realize his blood was pouring from what was assuredly a broken nose. Then he made the mistake of meeting the kid’s gaze, and the expression he saw there was scarier than anything he’d seen in a long, long time. His blue eyes were flat, empty, and lifeless, even as his lips twisted into a snarl. He leaned closer, and growled soft into his ear. 

“Same as you.” The words rang hollowly before the grip on his hair tightened, the only warning he got before his face was slammed hard into the floor beneath him and everything faded sharply away.


	41. Chapter Forty-One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Buckle up, dear readers.
> 
> Wait til the story wraps up before you hate me 😬
> 
> There are warnings for what is ahead. If anything seems remotely triggering, please stop and let me know you’d like a summary.
> 
> As always, thanks for reading.

As he found himself surrounded by strangers and new friends, listening to an older version of his brother’s boyfriend give them all a breakdown of the plan, Ventus began to question everything he knew. He thought all this mobster shit was just in the movies; he’d always logically had the concept in his mind, but since it did not touch the world he lived in, it had always just been an abstract thought at most. Now he was being told that they were infiltrating the mob’s headquarter’s secret stronghold with no idea what to expect when they got there. That anyone they came across should be considered to be heavily armed and extremely dangerous. That they would move out as a group and the redhead in charge would split them up as necessary, and their mission was both a search-and-rescue as well as a hostile takeover. Then there was no more time for his existential crisis, as they were being ushered towards three identical black SUVs waiting outside. Everyone crammed themselves into a vehicle except the leader of their little revolution, who hopped onto a motorcycle and led the party towards the location. 

He’d been so absorbed in what was going on, his adrenaline, panic, and determination combining to leave him in near-shock, that he’d barely noticed Aqua doggedly at his side until she grabbed his hand and silently held it for the duration of the ride to the huge casino. It was grounding, having her delicate fingers gripping firmly, but over in what felt like a matter of seconds before the motorcycle was leading then down a half-hidden road and to what the driver explained was the employee garage. Then everyone piled out to form a half-circle around the leader, and it was time to move out, and he went numb. Aqua’s hand slipped from his grasp as the man began to address them. 

“Alright everyone. Follow me, act casual. Men in our uniform, flank the others, make it look more like we belong here.” Everyone nodded, adjusted positions, and then began following the redhead at a brisk pace as he led them through an entrance and into a disorientingly office-like hallway; with all the drama, Ventus had half expected something more dungeon-like or dangerous-looking. The leader strolled along casually, hands in pockets, as if he wasn’t leading a mixed group of people to seize control of the place, and the others shuffled along awkwardly behind him for an infinite, excruciating time. At long last, they came to the end of the map they’d been shown before they left the warehouse; the last door at the end of the last hallway. The leader turned to the large, bald man on his right. 

“Mirage’s card?” Ven heard the redhead ask quietly, and the bald man handed him something that looked like a bright red credit card without a word. Their leader swiped it like a hotel room keycard, and a green light flicked on. “It’s showtime,” the man muttered, pushing the door open wide. 

Inside the room, the walls were a blank white, with no artwork, decor, or seating. It would have been completely empty except for the large elevator doors standing at the very end, with a single, ominous button beside it. The group looked uneasily at one another before the redhead pressed the button and stepped into the completely generic elevator waiting for them. The music softly playing as they descended was so at odds with what was going on, a nervous giggle escaped from one of the girls, but otherwise there was no sound from those gathered. When they arrived, they were met by a long hallway lined with closed doors, and at first their task seemed easy. 

“Fan our everyone, pick a door and wait for me to unlock it before you make a sweep and call out your findings.” The man wasted no time darting to the first door, where the bald man was waiting for him. Everyone else dashed to a doorway while the redhead ran back and forth, keying doors open as fast as he could. People began calling out what they found as more doors were opened, starting with the bald man, who announced that his door had another hallway. Another hallway was revealed before a series of boardrooms or conference rooms, then several waiting areas, before the last three doors, which turned out to be offices. The entire floor was devoid of life, so the redhead gathered them all by the hallways. “We go in two teams,” he called, “half of you with Rude, the rest with me. We can divide further if we need too, but we won’t know that til we get going. Keep in contact with the phones, all of my men have my number. Let’s move.” The men who worked for the redhead broke apart instantly, leaving the others to stand there for a second, staring at one another. Before anyone could do more than look an each other, the man growled, “Clock’s ticking.” That seemed to trigger Aqua, who stood tall and looked at them all. 

“You three go with Reno,” she said authoritatively, gesturing to where Kairi, Sora, and Riku stood near one another. “Ventus, Terra, with me. Zexion, I think you should go with us and let Demyx go with them. You two are the most skittish about fighting, and if it comes down to it, we can’t have both of you on one side.” The pair glanced at one another before nodding and drifting apart. The redhead, Reno, barely spared Sora and the others a glance before he turned and disappeared through the open doorway and they trailed behind, the door closing with a quiet thud after Demyx finally slipped past it. Ven and the others were already tailing the bald man on the opposite side of the hallway, however, and passing through their own door. Then the eleven of them began striding down an almost identical hallway to the first. 

“Doors,” the man Rude grunted, pulling out his own red keycard, and those gathered rushed to a door. Rude keyed the first door open cautiously, and ran to get the next door as one of their men pushed it open hesitantly. As Rude was opening the second door, the man called softly that it was storage and made his way to one of the still-unmanned doors. The process went on again, and this time there were two more hallways revealed before the rest proved to be office spaces; the workspaces weren’t empty this time. 

“Wha-?” A man sitting behind a desk jerked his head up in surprise when the door opened and Terra peeked inside. 

“Sir!” The brunette’s voice drew Rude back to the door he was walking away from immediately, and the large man pushed past Terra to enter the room, closing the door quickly behind himself. As the others stood there in uneasy silence, a sudden muffled shout could be heard, followed by a heavy thud. Rude stepped out of the room, straightening one of his jacket sleeves, and then walked back to the group. 

“People are home,” he said tersely, making eye contact with his team first, then Ven and the others. “Incapacitate before kill, some may defect to our side. Kill if necessary, though. If you can’t do that, hang back. If you need a weapon, let me know.” Ven glanced at Aqua, who’s face was filled with grim determination, and Terra, who was rubbing his hands together. Then Zexion coughed delicately. 

“If you have some other use I could serve,” he began, but Rude stopped him with a wave. 

“Stand watch on the two new hallways unless I call for you kid,” the bald man said, as Ven approached with Aqua and Terra on his heels. Rude didn’t even need to hear their requests, he reached into his coat, pulling two small handguns from his waistband and another from the sleeve of his jacket. He handed them over before walking to the closest door, signaling the man beside it, and then unlocking it in a quick swipe. He was on to the next door, repeating the process, while the first man burst into the room. As the second man entered, the first called that his room was empty, and on they went in quick succession. When Ven’s door was opened, he was sweating, but training kicked in and he took a deep breath before he sidled into the room, sweeping his arm in an arc to follow his line of sight with the weapon. He called out that his room was clear just before he heard Aqua yell in surprise, and his blood ran cold. He sprinted out of the room, eyes darting to locate the source of the sound, but before he could, there was another heavy thump and Aqua stepped from the next room, calling all clear. The anxiety growing in Ven diminished slightly, but only just; what if someone else got hurt because he drug them all into this? But then the rest of the rooms were done and Rude was gathering them together again. “We’ll split up again for these halls, but you,” he turned sudden towards Zexion, who was hanging back from the others, and pointed him towards one of the doors, “I need you to stay here and toss this room. It’s one of the big guys’ offices, and I want you to look for anything that could be important, or a map of where we are so we aren’t running blind. Got it?” Zexion nodded hurriedly and walked quickly to the pointed door, ducking inside without hesitation. Rude turned back. “Legend, Gun, Katana, Blondie, you guys come with me. The rest of you run through the other one. Call me if you need.” Without waiting, he turned through one of the doors leading to a hallways, and the people he’d named- two males and one female- followed behind. Ven shot one last look at Aqua and Terra as their group began to move out, and then turned to join Rude and the others. 

This path was darker than the others. Thin workspace carpet was replaced with concrete floors, there were far less lights, and the air itself seemed damp and stagnant. The doors in this hall had tiny, window-like panes of dark glass, which Ven felt safe to assume was a one-way. The five of them began peering into the darkened rooms, and Gun called Rude over softly to the first room she checked. Ven peered into the next room, which was completely empty of anything at all, and immediately moved down to the next unmanned door. Rude and Gun had entered the first room, and when they came out, they both looked grim. 

“Found someone, but they wouldn’t make it to the surface before we lost them, so we keep going. Anyone find anything else?” Rude asked gravely, and one of the other men indicated the door in front of them, which Rude went to open. Ven glanced into his window, and ice locked around his heart before he began ineffectually throwing himself at the door in a mindless effort to force it open. There was a body strapped to a metal table inside, and the shock of red hair was too, too familiar. 

“Here!” he yelled, unable to keep his voice low, and Rude abandoned the door he was opening to run over. As soon as the lock clicked, Ven exploded into the room and was at Axel’s side in a heartbeat. For a long, sickening moment, as Rude and the others crowded the doorway silently, Ven thought the man was already dead. There was no motion, no sound, as Ven hesitantly reached forward to try to find a pulse. Just before his fingertips touched the still, pale column of Axel’s neck, the redhead coughed weakly and eye eyelids fluttered open. 

“Roxy,” he gasped quietly, cloudy eyes falling on Ven. The effort he made to reach toward the blonde, despite still being restrained to the tabletop, was heartbreaking, and Ventus felt tears welling in his eyes as he quickly began working to get the man free. “Fuck, I’m sorry. I tried...I didn’t want-“ Axel’s voice was so hoarse and strained, it was difficult to hear him, but the redhead was making a valiant effort before another cough tore through him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Gun cover her mouth with her hand and turn her face into one of the other men’s shoulders. Axel was still talking, but his now free hand was searching toward Ven as he spoke. “You to see that. Not sexy I’m sure.” What Ven thought might have been a laugh tore from him, and Ven crumbled. He put his hand in Axel’s, and the redhead smiled with a sigh, eyes falling closed again. His mouth was moving faintly, but it seemed his destroyed voice was failing him. Rude approached the pair and mimed for him to check for injury, before he turned to a small work table Ven had failed to notice earlier and started going through the items and papers on the surface. Ventus tried to look for what had been done to Axel, but he really didn’t see anything that looked like it had done the kind of damage that would leave Axel in this state. “Fucked it up,” the redhead finally managed, Ven having to lean closer to hear, “Took too long.” He coughed once more, the arm holding Ven going slack, and the blonde’s eyes widened in horror. The inside of Axel’s right forearm was a patchwork mess of burned, bruised, damaged skin, and the veins stretching away from the area under the skin were much darker the closer they were to the area. Ven’s choked whimper made Rude turn, the syringes in his hands becoming visible when he did. They shared a disgusted look before Axel drew their attention again. “Don’t forget-“ he’d begun, but he lost the word right before his head dropped to the side and he fell completely still. A long, wounded sob filled the room, and it wasn’t until Rude was pulling him away that he realized the sounds were coming from him. The knowledge did nothing to ebb the flow of the tears running down his face.


	42. Chapter Forty-Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surely things are going better for the others, right? Let’s check in.
> 
> Again, tw ahead, lmk if summaries are needed.
> 
> And as always, thank you for reading.

Everything seemed wrong to Sora once his group had split from the whole and they had followed Reno into the next hallway. It had only three doors, one on either side and one at the end, and Reno went quickly to the door on the right himself, opening it and swiftly half-stepping inside. He pulled his head back with a confused look. 

“Just a really big, empty room,” he muttered, walking to the one at the end and quickly repeating his actions there. “Jackpot.” He entered the room, and it appeared to be a camera surveillance control room and a break room at once; the opposite side of the room from the terminal in front of a wall of monitors was a pair of small tables surrounded with plastic chairs. There were actually plates and cups out in front of two of the seats, but the room was completely devoid of human presence. 

“Why isn’t anyone here?” he heard Kairi whisper at his side, but he had no idea why that would be, either. Reno looked towards the group of them gathered before waving at one of his men. “Two-Guns, you and Kairi scan the monitors, let us know what’s going on, we keep going.” He whirled around and out of the door as soon as he’d finished speaking and the others began to follow; Sora hugged Kairi tightly to himself before letting her go. 

“Stay safe!” Sora heard her call before he slipped out of sight and back into the hallway, where Reno was already opening the last door. Red lights flashed ominously into the hallway as Reno pushed the door open wide and stepped further inside to allow the others in behind him. Once everyone had made it through, he pushed the door shut behind them, leaving the group in darkness only broken by a strip of red lights, flashing intermittently, along the ceiling. Reno quickly began to prowl through the dimly lit hallway, growling under his breath to no one in particular. 

“Either they know we’re here and went into lockdown, or there’s been some sort of catastrophic-“ His voice cut off suddenly as his body pitched forward; he had tripped over something laying across the hallway in front of him. There was a door on the right that they had almost walked past, and a body lay slumped in front of the door, blocking it from closing, with his legs stretched out into their path. The woman who’d been closest behind Reno crouched down, hand at the man’s neck to feel for a pulse, before she rose with a shake of her head. 

“This one’s gone,” she confirmed quietly, looking past the body into the room he had been leaving. “Looks like his office, no one else inside.” Reno nodded as he straightened back up, continuing on more cautiously. The next two rooms also appeared to have been offices, the inhabitants of which were added to the body count. Blood began to streak the walls and floor, and the entire group of them began looking more and more anxious with every minute that passed. Suddenly, they came across a series of doors clustered tightly together along one wall, indicating many small rooms. Each door had a small window-like panel set into it, and given how sketchy everything they’d seen here was, Sora was willing to bet it was one-way viewing. Reno and the others began peeking into the windows as they passed, but Sora numbly went straight for the only open door in the row, about two-thirds of the way down. Something was drawing him there even though he was willing his feet to stop with every step. When he was almost inside, he saw Riku’s head snap up to look at him out of the corner of his eye. 

“Sora, wait!” He hissed, hurrying to catch up, but the brunette was already inside. A single light hung above a flipped-over chair and glass littered the floor, but Sora crunched through it uncaringly as he approached a body laying halfway out of the circle of light, unmoving. Riku sidled into the room just as Sora crouched down by the head of silver hair of the man on the floor. With the amount of blood and visible damage to the man’s face, Sora was sure the man was dead, but when he touched him to check, one of the man’s eyes forced itself open. Riku’s hand grasped Sora’s shoulder from behind as the injured man’s lips began to move, words barely a whisper as they came. 

“He broke. He’s going to kill us all,” the man said, eye rolling around as it blindly searched around for something. Sora turned a surprised look to Riku, who grimaced and straightened up, looking around the darkened corners of the room. 

“Why do I feel like we’re in some kind of horror game where something crazy is about to jump out at us?” Riku muttered uneasily, his hand on Sora’s shoulder tightening briefly before he let go completely and went back to the door. Sora heard him call to Reno, “We’ve got someone talking here. Sorta.” Reno and two of the guys with him darted in, replacing Sora at the young man’s side. Sora rose but remained to listen to the quiet words. 

“What happened?” Reno demanded, and the man groaned before his eyes seemed to focus on the face above his. 

“Prisoner snapped, escaped...he’s going for boss...I think-“ Every word he gasped out seemed to be a struggle, and Reno gently prodded at the man’s side. A gurgling scream erupted from the man on the floor, and his eye closed again tightly. 

“His ribs are...gone,” Reno grimaced, looking at the man on his right. “They’re essentially powder.” The male at his side made a gagging noise and rose, backing out to join the others in the hall. The man moaned and tried to raise his head, failing but regaining everyone’s attention. 

“Gotta get more men-“ he began, but Reno shocked everyone as he reached his hand out, and in one quick blow, slammed the man’s head forward onto the concrete before rising to his feet and strolling out of the room. The other suited man spared a brief look at Riku and Sora before going after the redhead, and then they were alone. 

“He just- did he just- is he-“ Sora heard his own voice in his ears as he stammered out the beginnings of half-formed questions, and Riku offered no answers, simply pulling the brunette into a hug and holding him for a moment. Then, when Sora had calmed, he pulled back and held Sora at arms length. 

“Sora, go back to Kairi. It’s only going to get worse from here,” the silverette said gently, trying to meet Sora’s gaze, but a sudden wave of heat coursed through the shorter man. He shrugged off Riku’s gentle hold and forced a smile. 

“I’m not letting you have all the fun,” he said, turning his head to look back at Riku until the taller male followed him out. “I just wasn’t ready yet.” He also hoped that Roxas and Axel were being held far, far away from where they’d found themselves. When they reentered the hall, Demyx was waiting for them, looking sick and nervous. 

“One of the others found some more down there,” he said weakly, pointing further down the corridor, and the three hurried to catch up. Riku was first, immediately turning around and blocking the other two even as the others retreated from within. 

“Lab,” Reno announced curtly, before the sound of glass shattering distantly was heard, followed by several panicked or pained voices. There was a second when the group exchanged confused looks before Reno darted forward, everyone else hard on his heels, they rounded a corner up ahead, dodging bodies and skipping past doorways as they raced to locate the sound. Every bit they approached, the sounds of fighting grew louder. Screams and curses, accentuated by dull thuds, ringing crashes, and horrible scraping, were the background music for their desperate race, until three quick gunshots rang out. Then, a solid crunching and screaming, and two more gunshots. They turned another corner and found themselves in a large, open, warehouse-like space; Reno continued his sprint to lead them behind some steel shipping containers near where they came in. There was quiet for a moment, before a voice completely unfamiliar to Sora boomed through the air overhead. 

“What’s this? Look, we have more visitors.” Sora made eye contact with Demyx, standing to his left, as everyone glanced around. Eyes the color of the ocean were wide as saucers as they locked with his, and he saw the panic rise in them. 

“Think the others are doing better than us?” the tall blonde whispered, just before a series of bullets rained onto the container they were hiding behind.


	43. Chapter Forty-Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At least the chapter is longer?  
> At least the final battle is upon us?
> 
> Honestly, I’m just banking on you all being invested enough in the story to give me a little faith and read this to the end before I am shunned and excommunicated. 😬 
> 
> Warning for lots of violence and death and stuff, y’all know the drill by now.
> 
> PS I am needy and your comments are my lifeblood...and the fear your silence on the last few chapters has left me with is real. 😳😰
> 
> And as always, thanks for reading.

There was nothing inside Kairi except panic and frustration. No room for any other emotion or thought as she watched the monitors in horror. When they first been left in the room, the man her uncle had called ‘Two Guns’ had immediately gone to the monitors and began to scan over each one briefly before moving on to the next. There were probably fifty or sixty small screens, all in black and white, above and behind a computer terminal, which had one of the screens pulled up large-scale, with both color and sound. The screen that was pulled up was relatively quiet, however, the faint sound of screaming rang in Kairi’s ears until it faded to nothing. The room looked like it had at one point been some sort of laboratory, but it was destroyed. Totally devastated. Bodies littered the floor and work tables, blood and gore spattered over everything, equipment and glassware exploded on every surface. Kairi felt bile rose in her throat, and she gagged; the man handed her a small wastebasket with a sympathetic look before she was sick. It was horrible. The man returned to searching the screens, and once she had wiped her mouth with a paper towel found on a roll on the other side of the room, she joined him. 

“One group here,” Two Guns said helpfully, pointing out a few monitors in which she saw the other part of the main group they had split off from looking into doors in a hallway. Everything seemed safe and fine on their end, so she turned to look for the rest of their party before she noticed that the computer monitor’s screen was now black, and the grisly scene was only shown intermittently as red lights flashed and illuminated the room. “Yeah they lost power in a whole big area, this whole corner went dark except there at the very end,” the man said, indicating the bottom right corner of the screens, which had all gone to blinking black, except the bottom four screens in the very corner, which were still bright. It was those the man was focused on, frowning deeply. Then he pulled out his cellphone and began scrolling through it. “That’s bad. I gotta call Reno,” he muttered before lifting the phone to his ear. His frown grew deeper quickly, as Kairi’s eyes searched desperately to spot the movement that would let her find Sora. He removed his phone from his ear, pressed a few buttons, and returned it right when Kairi finally spotted them, and her stomach lurched. They were in the blacked-out area, Reno and his men leading them as they came across a series of tightly clustered doors. “We aren’t getting any fucking signal down here,” Two Guns snarled, shoving his phone angrily into his pocket and returning his attention to the bottom four screens, which caused Kairi to do the same. Noticing Kairi’s attention, he began to point out what he was looking at. “See, that’s the big boss there, the one Reno wants to replace. See those two next to him? They’re each in charge of a branch of what this organization does, both his second in command in some aspect. Main two lackeys, and skilled hit men. All three are backed in here,” he pointed to one of the screen, showing three men in long black coats standing on an upper floor overlooking some sort of warehouse or shipping dock, two of whom were prowling the area anxiously while the third simply stood there with his hands crossed behind his back and stared over the railings to the ground below. Steel shipping containers were scattered around the area, and closest to where the three men were, she could see at least five men standing behind a few so as to be hidden from the entrance, where the flashing red lights were coming from. “Probably five to seven down there,” Two Guns indicated, “some could be out of sight underneath the overhang.” Then his hand pointed back to the darkened area, where a shadowy figure with the same matching black coat as the leaders and their men, hood drawn up, was stalking slowly through the hallways; with no knowledge of the camera angles or building layout, it was impossible to tell if they were nearing where the other men in black were or if they were headed away. Then the man beside her drew her gaze just a few screens away, where Reno was leading his men forward with Sora, Riku and Demyx bringing up the rear. Her heart leapt to her throat as fear for them gripped her. Kairi watched as the hooded figure stepped into the light of the warehouse room, while Two Guns went for the terminal. “Gonna see if I can switch screens,” he was muttering as he fidgeted with the keyboard, clearly trying to shift the computer to that room. 

“Oh my Gaia,” Kairi whispered as she saw that the person was dragging two long, straight things behind they as they approached where the other men in the coats were. Clearly something was being said, because they paused, and then the figure angled their body forward, apparently screaming their response. Then they began to run forward, sparks flying out from where the things in their hands scraped the ground as they dashed furiously towards the stairs leading up to the trio. Kairi almost felt bad that their traitor didn’t know what they were running into, but she was carried away watching the drama unfold. When the hooded figure was drawing near the trap, one of the men behind the containers stepped out a second too early, and that was all the warning the figure needed. They turned mid-dash in what seemed like an impossibly quick move, angling their course towards a lift that had been presumably been left over from moving cargo. Just as the remainder of the men came out from where they’d been hidden, the figure slammed their weapons into the front and side windows of the vehicle, pulverizing the glass and launching the shrapnel of sharp fragments at them. Kairi watched at least three men go down, two clawing at their eyes and body while the third clasped hands to his neck, blood spurting horrifically from behind them; the glass must have hit an artery. The two or three men left standing had jumped back under cover, and the hooded face turned back up towards the three men on the ledge. 

“Here we go,” Kairi heard the man to her side muttering, before he groaned, “No, boss, get outta there.” The petite girl glanced towards the movement in the darkened monitors and saw Reno, Sora, and the others break into a run along the corridor, and she felt sick. They had no idea what they were about to walk in to. Her attention flashed to the large monitor, which her companion had finally managed to switch onto one of the cameras in the warehouse room and the scene before them came to life with a blaze of sound. Screaming and sharp cries came from the speakers as the hooded figure charged at the remaining men that were on the ground level, swinging the things in his hands in a violent dance that was punctuated with thuds as they connected with people and grating, clanging crashes when they struck metal instead. They took one down quickly, the man dropping like a stone when one of those things hit him in the head, and another cursed loudly as he narrowly avoided being struck himself, jumping backwards and letting the traitor hit one of the containers instead. One more man who’d been out of the sight of the camera made a dash towards the figure while it’s back was turned, raising his gun to take aim, but the figure clearly heard the approach; they dove to the ground in a roll as the man fired his weapon multiple times into nothing, coming up right in the man’s face and bowling him over backwards. That moment changed the entire situation in Kairi’s eyes, however, because as the figure had jumped upright, their hood had fallen back, revealing a head of spiky blonde hair that sent sharp spikes of concern and fear through the red-haired girl. It was ROXAS? She couldn’t even imagine what could have set...him...Kairi felt her heart stop and her entire world crumble. There was really only one thing she could imagine these people to have done that could explain Roxas’s plunge off the deep end. Tears clouded her vision, blocking her view of exactly what Roxas was doing, but there was a disgusting crunching sound while the man who had shot at him screamed and his body fell to the floor, and then two final gunshots pierced the air. At the same moment Roxas jerked- he’d either been hit or had narrowly avoided the bullets- and threw himself to the ground behind the lift, she saw Reno and Sora and the others dash into the large space. They beelined it behind a few containers by the entrance, and then the leader of the trio of men upstairs stepped forward. 

“What’s this? Look, we have more visitors,” the man said loudly, spreading his arms wide with a smile. 

“Oh fuck,” Two Guns whispered softly before the sound of approaching footsteps could be heard in the hallway outside, and he cursed much louder, “Oh FUCK.” He whirled towards the door, pulling out a pair of guns from where they’d been hidden in his waistband, while Kairi scanned the monitors to try to see who was approaching them. She recognized Ventus and Aqua a second before it was too late. 

“No, stop!” she shouted, causing Two Guns to freeze and shoot her a look, and the running pair to skid to a halt outside of the control room. 

“Kairi?” the blonde called, leaning into the doorway and panting heavily. “What’s-“ 

“No time,” she interrupted quickly, and saw Aqua lean in over Ven’s shoulder. “Your brother went off the fucking deep end, he’s in a huge fight, and the others just got there, but-“ The sound of bullets slamming into metal burst from the screen, drawing everyone’s attention to the monitor, where shots were coming from both the last man still putting up a fight on the ground floor as well as from one of the men with their leader. They were pinning down Reno and his men, keeping them from reaching Roxas, who was struggling to get back on his feet. 

“I’ve gotta get there before he gets himself killed,” Ven gasped, turning towards the door to continue his sprint, but Kairi grabbed his sleeve to stop him. 

“Wait, did they...do you know what set Roxas off?” she asked hesitantly, courage failing her and leaving her unable to ask what she was really trying to. The look on both their faces, though, told her they knew what she was asking...and had the answer. “Please, please don’t-“ Aqua rested a gentle hand on Kairi’s shoulder as she looked at Ventus, who glanced away before backing out of the room and taking off at a run. 

“They...these people, they...did something to your brother, Kairi,” she said delicately, seeming to struggle for words. “The others are bringing...we couldn’t just leave him like that, but...um, one of us should probably go ask them to send some people to help while you stay here.” Her kind words were a slap to the face, and Kairi couldn’t speak, couldn’t ask...Two Guns left the room quietly. 

A slow, chilling laugh spread through the room, and eyes returned to the screen to see Roxas partially step from behind the lift and lock eyes with the man on the ledge, pointing one of his weapons towards the man as he spoke. His voice was hoarse, rough like he’d lost it, but his words were spat with such venom there was no mistaking what he said. 

“No matter how many more people you’ve got in here, there’s nothing coming between you and I for long,” he called, and despite the visible smear of blood he’d left on the floor, the point of the thing in his hand didn’t waver even slightly as he held it in the air. The old man above gave a manic grin and a nod as he looked down at the blonde, as if Roxas was a student who’d done better than expected when tested. 

“You’ve made quite the show, haven’t you?” the man called down, and his people all held their positions, clearly waiting for the two to finish speaking. “I suppose you haven’t reconsidered my proposal?” A strangled scream escaped the blonde and he made a dash for the stairs, and the man above who’d previously been firing his gun leveled his weapon at Roxas, but was stopped by a raised hand from their leader. The man on the ground, however, either didn’t see or chose to ignore the signal, stepping out into the open to get a clear shot. Suddenly, Demyx stepped around the side of the container the others had been pinned behind. 

“Roxas, dive!” he screamed desperately, seconds before the man on the ground fired his weapon at the short blonde. The quiet sound of relief from the blue-haired woman at her side told Kairi that Roxas must have listened, dodged the shot, but she’d still been watching the old man. When Demyx had shouted, he’d dropped his cease-fire and gestured for the man next to him to go on. And the man had let out a single, quick shot that hit home in a second that stopped time. Ventus had finally made it into the room and slid to a stop less than a foot away from Demyx, who turned slowly, confusion on his face, before he collapsed into the shorter man’s arms. Ventus was frozen, a stricken look on his face, before Reno and Sora leapt forward to tug the two behind their makeshift shelter and out of sight. Roxas hadn’t seen the events taking place behind him, however, and he recaptured Kairi’s attention as he sprang to his feet, having thrown himself off the stairs from about halfway up. His course changed, and he darted towards where he’d been shot at from. The man in the black coat barely had time to duck back behind his container before Roxas was rounding the other side, swinging one of his weapons at the man’s head before his look of surprise had faded. He went down, and it was clear he wouldn’t be getting back up. A triumphant roar erupted from Roxas as he sprinted back towards the stairs, and Kairi heard people outside the room she and Aqua were in, but shock had consumed her, and she felt helpless to do anything more that watch what was happening around her.


	44. Chapter Forty-Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is fast, but it has to be. Rollercoaster next few chapters, because we’ve almost come to the end, dear readers.
> 
> As always, thanks for reading.

Ventus could feel the warm spread of Demyx’s blood seeping into his own shirt, and it was surreal, because the moment felt almost like a hug. The hands pulling him and Demyx quickly to the others were surreal; he hadn’t been picked up since he was a kid. The hands trying to pull Demyx from his grip got him moving again, and he released his hold on the taller blonde with a gasp. 

“Demyx!” he exclaimed softly, before he was nudged none-too-gently away by Reno, who put both hands over the wound near Demyx’s collarbone and pushed down hard. A few of the suited men with them were crouched down with Reno, who began snarling orders in a low voice. 

“You two get his shirt off, tear it down to long strips. Knife, help me out here, you know wounds better than me.” A woman nodded and bent down, murmuring to the others. Demyx’s gaze shifted sluggishly to Ven, and he frowned slightly. 

“Dude, did I just get fucking shot?” His question sounded dazed, not like he was in pain, and Ventus didn’t think that was a good sign. The taller blonde’s frown deepened, and his look sharpened. “Did Roxas..?” The question brought Ventus back sharply, and he rose to his feet. 

“Yeah Dem, you saved him, man. Take a break, it’s my turn.” Demyx nodded and closed his eyes with a wince as Reno traded his hands with the woman’s, then got to his feet as well. 

“We’ve gotta get up there with him, kid’s dead if it’s him against those three no matter WHAT kind of psychotic episode he’s having right now,” Reno said sharply, watching Roxas begin a dash toward the stairs again. “Fuck, you three stay, everyone else catch up to the kid. Don’t leave the only target on him. Guys, catch up if you get him stable, Knife knows her shit.” Then he and Ven were racing, Sora and Riku and a few other men right behind them, in a desperate attempt to get to the stairs. By the time they were nearing the stairs, Roxas had disappeared from view over the top of them, and he envied Reno’s long legs. He heard the old man who was leading the others start to talk to his brother, who must have stopped. 

“Such a pity, are you sure this is your choice? The other path is still open, should you choose to take it.” He heard Roxas speak as his feet touched the bottom stair, and he pushed himself faster. 

“Your man killed him. You have nothing I want, now.” The older man laughed, as if Roxas’ statement was the funniest joke had ever heard. Ven’s legs burned as he forced them up, up, as fast as he could go. Reno, a few steps ahead of him, was nearing the top. 

“I wouldn’t make you an offer I couldn’t-“ their boss began, but Roxas’s inhuman, broken scream drowned him out. 

“I FUCKING WATCHED HIM DIE!” the small blonde howled as he launched himself towards the men just as Reno burst onto the platform with Ven shadowing him, the others’ footsteps echoing the pair’s mad dash. Ventus felt time stop as he watched his brother midair, swinging his makeshift weapons seemingly in slow motion, towards the man with the gun in his hands, who just stood there with a smirk. Before Ventus could say a word, the second lackey seemed to blur with speed as ke kicked out a foot, catching Roxas solidly in the side and sending him crashing off course into a wall. Blood smeared along the wall as he slid down, but he was on his feet and running back towards the men in seconds. Without thinking, he dashed forward as well, and that seemed to startle the trio for just a second. That second was all they needed, though. The man who had sent the kick had glanced towards Ventus, and by the time he looked back, Roxas was on him, raining down blows with what Ventus now realized were metal bars of some sort. Ventus, meanwhile, had thrown himself at the man with a gun, who was lining Roxas up in his sights, and barreled into his side, sending them both to the ground. Then the others joined the fight, and Sora stomped on the hand holding the gun, forcing the man to drop it with a hiss. As he kicked Ven away from him, one of Reno’s men grabbed his collar and pulled him to his feet, shoving him aggressively into the waiting arms of two more men. Now free of imminent danger, Ven looked to the fighter, but saw him pinned to the ground, Reno in his face and Riku pressing a foot between his shoulders to keep him in place. Roxas wasn’t with them, though, and he swung his head back around to see the brother climbing a fragile-looking emergency ladder to a catwalk along the roof, where the old man was already stepping onto the narrow walkway. 

“Roxas!” Ven shouted, trying to call his brother back, get him to listen, but Roxas completely disregarded him. 

“I’m not letting you go,” Roxas crooned as he rose higher and higher, but the old man simply began strolling away along the narrow metal path. “You’re mine now.” As Roxas hit the landing, Ven heard the man’s laugh. 

“So sure of everything, aren’t you? Foolish child,” the man scolded, and Roxas growled as he strode towards the man angrily. He’d dropped the metal bars sometime before the climb, but his fists were clenched and held ready at his side as he went. 

“Roxas, wait!” Ven tried again, and heard someone on the ladder below; Reno was climbing after them, using his long limbs to his advantage as he rose quickly. Ven rolled himself out onto the landing as well, jumping to his feet and cautiously jogging after his brother. The man had made it to a branch in the walkway had turned, headed back towards the entrance to the warehouse room, with Roxas was less than twenty feet away, approaching fast. 

“I won’t remind you of your choice, boy, or of the simplemindedness of your headstrong actions here today,” the man called over his shoulder as he neared the end of the catwalk, “nor will I hesitate to throw you from this ledge if you continue to try to assassinate me.” If anything, Ven thought he saw Roxas speed up at the words. It was a desperate thing, dangerous to distract him so close to the enemy, but Ven needed to stop Roxas before he reached the man who could probably throw the shorter blonde easily given what he’d just gone through. 

“ROXAS,” Ven screamed, as Reno appeared at his back. “He’s not dead!” Roxas stopped abruptly, falling to his knees and turning to blindly stare towards his brother, expression desperate. “Axel’s alive. He needs you to come back,” Ven finished more slowly, clearly. He got the desired response of stopping Roxas, but several things happened in a chain reaction that he couldn’t have guessed was coming if he’d tried.


	45. Chapter Forty-Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Maybe some of y’all will forgive me after this?  
> Or maybe I will tick off more of you beloved readers. 😬😰
> 
> Either way, only a little bit left to go!
> 
> And as always, thanks for reading.

The words slammed into him like blows and he finally, finally stopped, falling to his knees as his legs collapsed beneath him and turning to face the source. His own face stared back at him, and he didn’t know if he was telling himself a poison-laced lie or a glorious miracle. Then, it was Ventus, leaning over the railings of the catwalk to make eye contact, and he continued to promise impossible things. 

“Axel’s alive. He needs you to come back.” The words were said forcefully, intentionally, as if willing him to believe them, and he wanted to so badly it was painful. He would never be able to forget watching Axel’s body go still after enduring so much, though, or hearing the ashen blonde announce for the record the date and time of Axel’s death. A broken whimper escaped him, and he tried to rise again only to realize he couldn’t; now that he’d finally stopped his crazed momentum, his body wouldn’t respond to his commands to resume the chase. Xehanort’s mocking laughter rang in his head, and it took a long second for him to realize the sound was real and turn to look at the man. 

“You see too late what your haste will reap,” Xehanort intoned dramatically before turning to a shocked redhead frozen behind Ventus. “Well done, my old friend. This place is yours, though I daresay you may need to fill some recently vacated positions.” A snarl formed on the red headed man’s lips, so like Axel’s but all wrong at the same time, and he leveled a gun over Roxas’s head at the man. Roxas saw Ven’s eyes go wide as he saw the path the bullet would take. 

“NO!” Ven shouted, pushing Reno’s arm and forcing the shot to go wide at the same time Xehanort hit a button on the railing and mechanical whirring started up, causing the end of the catwalk where the man was standing began to rise. Footsteps crashed towards Roxas before his brother dropped to his knees next to him, and together they stared side by side as Xehanort’s hidden elevator neared the ceiling, where two panels had slid back to allow it access to continue upward past the barrier. Reno fired his weapon twice more, but the bullets ricocheted ineffectually off the steel underside of the platform, and Xehanort’s laughter ended sharply as the panels slid back together and sealed his escape route. 

“Fuck,” Reno cursed sharply, turning and dashing back towards the ladder, obviously on his way to try to head Xehanort off from wherever he was going. Roxas had no more energy to care about that, there was nothing left in him at all except...His hand desperately grasped air at his side until he got ahold of Ventus’ arm and gripped tightly. 

“Is he really...?” Roxas asked, focusing in sharply on his brother’s face. That was the only thing that really mattered in all of this, the only thing he needed to hear before he let go and gave in to the overwhelming exhaustion. Tears streaked down his brother’s face, but there was a smile under everything. 

“Yeah, Rox, we’ve got him. He’s not in great shape, but we’re gonna get him sorted out. He’s been trying to talk to you, come on.” Ventus stood and tried to help pull Roxas to his feet, but Roxas had slumped forward with relief, and was resting heavily against the railings. 

“Can’t get up,” he sighed, and his head spun. Now that adrenaline was running out in his system, he began to feel some of the pain he’d pushed away during his rampage. “Ven, I think I’m bleeding,” he whimpered weakly, and Ven was back on his knees in a second. He helped Roxas pull off the coat he’d stolen to blend in, and Roxas heard the sharp intake of breath. 

“If I help, can you climb down?” Ven asked softly, and Roxas vaguely wondered the same thing without giving his brother a real answer. Suddenly, more voices broke out from below, as some of the others must have finally made their way to the big room. Ven jumped up and leaned as far over the railings as he could to tell down to those below. “Hey, I need some help up here!” Roxas let himself drift, holding on to the tiny spark of hope in his chest that he was wrong, that Axel could be okay somehow. Would Ven lie to him to get him to stop? He tried to turn his mind away from the memories of what had been done to the redhead, but they were too vivid, too powerful, and he was helpless to stop them playing behind his closed eyelids. He felt hot tears burning, but they did not fall- he’d screamed and cried and fought as hard as he could while watching Axel. Where was Axel? Suddenly, another face was in front of his, and the brown haired man addressed him softly. 

“Roxas, it’s Terra. You still with us here?” Roxas tried to nod, and apparently it was enough for Terra, who lifted him up as if he weighed nothing. “We’re gonna get you out of here. Reno says he’s gonna stick everyone in his new hotel and send medical help to the rooms.” The words meant nothing to Roxas; he couldn’t put meaning behind them. Either Terra didn’t realize, or he was more speaking to Ven than Roxas, but he continued on the one-sided conversation. “They said it was you who did all this damage. I don’t know if I buy it, I don’t think you could fight your way out of a wet paper bag right now.” Ven laughed hollowly from somewhere behind him. 

“Yeah, note to self, don’t fuck with his friends,” his brother murmured, and Terra’s broad shoulders shook with suppressed laughter. Roxas wanted to just close his eyes, give in, but until he saw Axel for himself, heard his heartbeat and looked into those strikingly green eyes, he couldn’t. They got to the ladder and Terra readjusted his hold, moving Roxas to the front of his body and holding him there like a small child, one hand supporting his weight as the brunette began to climb down. When they’d made it to the bottom, Terra carefully passed him to Riku and one of Reno’s men before climbing down the rest of the way for himself, and then Roxas found himself carried swiftly between the two men. The room was so quiet and still compared to the mayhem earlier; it was surreal, and then they were through it. 

“Where’s everyone else?” Roxas asked Riku quietly, letting his head fall onto the silverette’s shoulder. Riku gave him a cautious look. 

“They’ll meet us once we get you settled and your bleeding stopped,” he replied softly, glancing down at his once white and silver shirt that now sported a massive smear of blood. “Everyone’s tying up loose ends right now.” They fell silent, and as his eyelids grew heavier, he felt the men supporting him speed up. Ventus and Terra were talking together quietly, but their voices wove and combined into a soothing, quiet hum. He blinked, and they were at the elevator; another blink, and Reno was back, directing Riku and the other man towards another elevator. Roxas saw him hand Ven a keycard before he turned and left them again. 

“Axel?” Roxas heard his own voice rasp out over the ringing in his ears. He saw Terra and Riku share a worried look, but it was Ven’s voice he heard floating through the air to give him the lifeline he was trying desperately to grasp onto. 

“Almost there, Rox. Just a little further. Reno said he’s already up there waiting for you.” His eyes almost closed again, but he fought against the encroaching unconsciousness and nodded. He could hold on a little longer. He could believe them; he had to. The elevator let them off after a long ride up, and then they were in a bland hallway with several numbered doors. The man in Reno’s uniformed suits looked at Ven. 

“Wanna slide that key?” Ven glared at the man, walking a few steps further to the next door. 

“We’re taking him to Axel first,” the shorter man said tightly with a gesture, but Reno’s man held his ground. 

“Look, the boss said-“ Suddenly, a third pair of arms was lifting him, gently tugging him from Riku and the man, and he was moving towards Ven, towards the promise of Axel. 

“Thanks, Terra,” Ven said, speaking the words Roxas couldn’t get out, and the door opened. People were milling around the small space, some familiar, some not. His eyes found Aqua, leaning by the door, then they found Kairi, sitting in a chair in the corner with her hands clasped over her mouth, looking upset as she took in their entrance. A woman in a white coat stepped into Roxas’ view, hands on her hips, blocking his searching gaze. 

“What are you doing? We’ve only just got him settled,” the woman asked sharply, frowning further as she gave Roxas a visual assessment. “Isn’t he supposed to be next door?” Riku stepped around Terra, grabbing the woman by the elbow and leading her forcefully as he whispered to her. He had no time to spare for their hushed conversation, however, because it was then that his eyes found the still figure on the bed, eyes closed, red spikes laying haphazardly across the pillow. Roxas struggled weakly in Terra’s arms, trying to get down, but Terra didn’t put him down. Instead the man paced quickly across the room to the bed, setting him gently on the mattress beside Axel. Roxas leaned over the man, one hand supporting him and the other hovered shakily over pale skin, afraid to touch Axel, and then gloriously green eyes blinked open and up at him. 

“Hey Roxy.” Roxas felt a whoosh of air escape him in a sort of laugh, and he let his arm give out, collapsing weakly onto Axel’s chest. As an arm lifted and long fingers brushed through his sweaty, tangled hair, he gave one more attempt at speech before he allowed tired eyes to close. 

“Axel, I...” Then everything was too much, and he felt himself slip away.


	46. Chapter Forty-Six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you aren’t understanding the names of Reno’s men, you didn’t play enough Final Fantasy 😂 
> 
> There will be a little pause in my rapid-fire updates to post for GIM? and Discord Required, and then we’re gonna wrap this thing up!
> 
> And as always, thanks for reading.

Zexion didn’t know what to do to be helpful, and it was irritating him to no end. The others had left him searching an office, and he’d only just begun finding things that looked like they could be helpful when Ventus and Aqua had run by, and he’d left the room to stare after them, bewildered. Then the rest of the group slowly followed, Terra and Rude carrying an unconscious Axel between them. He’d gone with them, but again, he had no way to really provide help. They got back to the main hallway and saw the open door to the hallway the other part of their group had taken, and paused, waiting. Terra and Rude, with the help of a few others, managed to set Axel down against a wall, but he couldn’t sit upright on his own, and Zexion had found an opportunity to do SOMETHING; he sat next to the redhead, letting Axel’s weight slump onto his smaller frame, while the others talked about what to do. Terra wanted to leave a few behind and have the rest follow Ven, but Zexion was surprised when Rude declared getting Axel medical attention was the first priority. While they bickered, Zexion felt Axel stir. 

“What’s...where is Roxas?” Zexion heard the taller man mumble, head lolling forward dangerously as he tried to look around. Zexion put a hand to the man’s shoulder to steady him, and a spasm went through the redhead as he groaned quietly. 

“They’re still looking for him, we haven’t...” His words fell off as Axel tried to shake his head and almost tipped them both over, and he was suddenly more focused on keeping them from collapsing. 

“No...just here,” Axel panted, fighting to get the words out, and his eyelids dropped heavily. Zexion shook his head sadly, not sure if telling the truth was the better or worse choice but that retracting his previous statement wasn’t really an option. 

“Ventus,” he whispered, and Axel’s quiet whimper was a knife to his heart. The redhead laid his head onto Zexion’s shoulder gingerly, then heavily as he faded from consciousness again, and the slate-haired man was almost grateful. Then a new man was dashing into the hallway, gaining the attention of everyone at once. 

“Crazy shit is going on, and there’s a fight, and they need help,” the man panted, clearly having run to find them. Everyone began talking at once, but Rude barked out an order for silence before he addressed the man. 

“Most of us can go, but someone needs to get to a place with phone signal and call for our medical team. You wanna go, Two Guns?” The man nodded, still winded, and went to press the button beside the elevator doors. Rude turned to look at him, and Zexion suddenly felt much smaller than he already was. “If I leave you here with him and someone armed, will you be okay?” Zexion nodded jerkily, and Rude waved someone towards them before signaling everyone else to follow in the direction the man Two Guns had come from. After the sound of their footsteps faded, silence stretched on immeasurably. Zexion was so highly strung at that moment, he didn’t trust his own sense of time passing, and began to count Axel’s slow breaths to measure if it was minutes or hours going by. The elevator whirring to life again broke his concentration, and the man Rude had left with them stepped between the doors and where Zexion and Axel sat. Luckily, it was Two Guns, as well as two men in sterile white coats. The man with them sighed in relief before he approached Two Guns, at the same the men rushed to the position he and Axel held. Without a word, they both got Axel up and carried him back to the elevator, disappearing as quickly as they’d come. Zexion stood but remained leaning against the wall, and tried not to listen to the men...or at least, to make his eavesdropping less apparent. He heard partial fragments of their whispered exchange, things like ‘everything that way’s been destroyed,’ ‘use of chemicals or poisons but we have no idea,’ and ‘all three are together with a handful of other men.’ He realized they were talking about him, suddenly, when he caught one’s murmured ‘don’t know, that’s a lot of death,’ and the other’s, ‘science nerds aren’t squeamish, are they?’ He stepped away from the wall and towards them. 

“Is there some way I could be of assistance?” Zexion asked politely, approaching the pair. They both gave him an appraising look, and then Two Guns spoke at last. 

“Maybe. It would help to know what was in Reno’s kid’s system, but we don’t have a clue what they did to him.” Then the other man joined in, continuing the thought. 

“They found a lab, but apparently it’s,” he paused, glancing at Two Guns, “in pretty bad shape.” Zexion nodded to himself. 

“And someone needs to search the lab but everyone else is otherwise engaged?” Zexion supplied, understanding. Destruction wasn’t an obstacle, that would be a simple task, he was sure. Two Guns shook his head slowly. 

“That, and there’s a substantial amount of...human remains...all over the place,” he said bluntly, clearly searching for the words to describe what he’d seen. Ah. Gross. But surely they had gloves somewhere in the lab. He could deal with whatever scene they described as long as he could keep himself safe and clean. 

“I think I’ll be able to manage,” he said delicately, looking between the two. “Could one of you show me there?” Two Guns grimaced at his companion before heading back to the hallway without a word, so Zexion followed dutifully behind in silence. 

The lab was awful, the men had been right about that. The devastation here was much more intense than the other rooms they had passed; the violence seemed more extreme when the victims wore lab coats rather than the uniform black of the others. He found a glove station mounted to the wall immediately to the left upon entry, quickly donned a pair, and then stuck his head out into the hallway where the other man waited. 

“I’ll be fine if you want to stay out here,” he offered, and the man threw him a grateful look before nodding and settling himself into a seated position leaning up against the wall as Zexion went back inside. The filing cabinets may have been tipped, but had not opened to spill out their contents, so checking those files was easy, despite them not holding anything of value. He really didn’t want to have to pick up the pages scattered around the room, slowly soaking up whatever liquid or chemical they were laying in, so he instead turned to a clipboard on a tabletop that was still clinging to some of its pages. When he saw the photo of the redhead on an operating table, however, he began gathering the loose pages with a sigh. He’d almost completed his task, and had found a box to put all of the contaminated pages into to transport them, when the first group of people passed by the door. He saw Two Guns jump up to block the doorway at the same time he heard the shouting, but the words soon sharpened into a call to stand down, and the group passed them by quickly. Zexion hurried to finish, double-checking around the room to make sure he hadn’t missed anything, when a second, smaller group hurried by, and Two Guns stayed in the doorway, letting them pass in silence. Zexion gathered the pages and clipboard into the box and came to stand at Two Gun’s elbow, signaling he was ready to go. When the man eyes the box under his arm, he answered the unspoken question. “I think I found what you need.” 

“Awesome, lets get the hell out of here. Med team’s gonna be busy as it is,” the man said, in motion as soon as his words had started and barely waiting for the shorter man to keep up. Zexion hurried gamely after him, though. 

“Did they find more victims?” he asked, a little worried. He’d only picked up papers he thought went with Axel’s documents; he hadn’t really been searching for anything else. The man shook his head, and they came out into the main hallway again. 

“No, those people who went by were taking back the wounded,” he said gruffly, clearly indicating he was done. Zexion had an unpleasant knot building in his chest, but gave the man peace, and after the button for the elevator was pressed, no sounds were made between them until the it had taken them back up, and Two Guns led them onward. 

After they had made their way into what appeared to be a very nice hotel, Two Guns muttered something about ‘getting the files to them as soon as possible’ and took them to a series of rooms on a seemingly empty floor. They paused as Two Guns knocked before they were let into a crowded, busy room. The man took the box from him and lugged it towards some of the people who seemed to be medical professionals, and that left Zexion staring uneasily around the room. He saw Kairi, but her intense, concerned stare towards the bed confirmed that this was Axel’s room, and he left her alone. Then he saw Terra, Aqua, and Ventus crowded together, deep in discussion, and he gravitated towards them. Upon seeing his approach, they opened their circle easily to accept him, although they did so with slightly surprised looks. 

“I’m glad to see you all safe. Was Roxas found...?” The looks on everyone’s faces made him trail off, feeling woefully uninformed. It was Ven who spoke first, his words slow and careful. 

“Roxas is right there, laying on the bed with Axel. I’m not going to let the doctors separate them, although I’m sure they’re complaining about the added difficulty.” The look of concern didn’t leave him, though, and Zexion felt his anxiety rise. If everyone was found, why were they acting like this? Where were the others? The kindness in Aqua’s eyes scared him as she placed a hand on his arm lightly. 

“It was really kind of you to come straight here, but...wouldn’t you rather go check on Demyx?” Her question froze him, and his heart rate picked up, hammering in his ears. 

“What...Demyx...what?” the slate-haired male gasped, jerking toward the door, and then back to them, having no idea where to go. Terra grimaced, recognizing his inability to find words or direction as the beginning of shock. 

“Come on, Zex, I’ll take you,” the brunette said, and went for the door with Zexion hovering behind him like a shadow. They went to a room a little bit further down the hall, and Terra rapped lightly on the door before Riku of all people appeared to open it. 

“Zexion, me and Sora have been sitting with him until you made it, but-“ Panic spiked in Zexion as he brushed past his friend and dashed inside the room. He barely registered Sora sitting at the side of the bed before he was there himself, bracing for the worst, for a still, bleeding, pained Demyx to be holding on to life, but instead- 

“Hey Zex, can you believe my luck?” Demyx was sitting up, heavily aided by a pile of pillows behind him, but smiling and laughing. The relief that coursed through Zexion was almost palpable; he sat down on the corner of the bed heavily, but grinned towards the man in the bed adoringly. If he was in such good spirits, whatever had happened couldn’t have been that terrible. 

“What happened?” he heard himself ask anyway, and Demyx puffed out his chest proudly. 

“Dude, I got shot,” he said, almost sounding like he was bragging, and Zexion knew all the color had drained from his face as the shock of the words settled in. 

“What?” he questioned again hurriedly, and Sora piped up, working to stifle his own chuckles. 

“He really did, jumped out from our hiding place to warn Roxas that someone was shooting at him, only to get shot himself.” Before Zexion had the time to freak out, Riku stepped up, placing a hand naturally onto Sora’s back as he leaned in to whisper in the slate-haired man’s ear. 

“Doctor said in went clean through, right under his collarbone, didn’t hit anything vital. He’s gonna have trouble with his arm for a while, but otherwise he’s gonna be fine.” The emotional turbulence was going to kill him. Zexion leaned cautiously forward, and placed a soft kiss on the blonde’s forehead, making Demyx break into a wide, infectious smile. 

“I’m fine, Zexy,” Demyx beamed, and Zexion let himself believe it. “Did you see Axel or Roxas?” the blonde continued, concern breaking into his upbeat demeanor, and Zexion felt a little guilty for not pausing to ask about the pair. 

“They’re together in the next room with doctors,” he hedged, then, unable to keep his morbid curiosity in check, “Did Roxas go through the same thing as Axel?” Apparently, he was less informed than expected; Demyx, Riku, and Sora exchanged a significant look. 

“You..no one’s filled you in?” Riku asked in surprise, and Zexion shook his head. 

“No, and I ended up in a lab gathering information about what they did to Axel. What happened to Roxas?” Everyone started talking at once, furthering his confusion briefly before remedying it. 

“If nothing else, he’s probably exhausted, that was-“ 

“I think he got shot a few times, at least-“ 

“ROXAS happened to everyone else, not the other way around-“ 

“Babe,” Demyx broke in, and the other two stopped, letting him break the news. “Roxas lost his shit, thought Axel was dead. Everything that happened after that was him.” Zexion found himself grateful he was sitting. 

“What?” he breathed again, knowing in the back of his mind that he was beginning to sound like a broken record but unable to do anything different. Sora nodded, a half-smile on his face. 

“Yeah, isn’t that crazy? Our little Rox, taking on the mob single-handedly.” After a beat of silence, the four of them dissolved into laughter, and though it took a while to die down, a lot of the stress Zexion was holding had dissipated by the time they were quiet again. Demyx smirked, eyes gleaming at Zexion, before he turned to the other two. 

“Any chance you guys wanna go check on them? We’ll be fine,” he asked, and the pair grinned. 

“You got it, Dem,” Sora giggled, before grabbing Riku’s arm and pulling the silverette out the door with him as he left. Then Demyx turned to the white-coated figure on the other side of the bed, who seemed to be checking the contents of the IV bag hung next to the bedside. “I changed my mind, those ice chips sound awesome. Would you still be willing to get me some?” Demyx asked the woman sweetly, giving her an innocent smile, but she still glared at Zexion on her way out the door as if he were going to do something to compromise her patient. Then they were alone, and Zexion realized that compromising her patient might have been exactly what Demyx had planned on. The thought was confirmed when Demyx turned a heated gaze onto the shorter man. “There, privacy. Now will you please come give me a real kiss?” Demyx begged, patting the space next to him on the bed, and despite worrying about tangling his IV line and the wires that were probably monitoring his heart, Zexion gladly did as he was asked.


	47. Chapter Forty-Seven

Reno was in his office, an open bottle of whiskey sitting on the otherwise empty desk in front of him, head in hands. He didn’t even know how to feel, and the whiskey hadn’t given him an answer yet; at least, not so far. On the one hand, they’d sort of won. Axel was at least alive, and the medical team assured him that with the notes they’d been given, they’d be able to figure out what was in his system and counteract it. Oogie’s, and the entire empire Xehanort had created, was his. Most of the contacts had gone along with the change in power since he’d been at Xehanort’s side and was a familiar face to most of them. But on the other hand...Xehanort had gotten away, and that fucker wasn’t going to just let everything be taken from him so easily. That much he was certain of. And the underground section of the facilities was demolished. That fucking kid...Reno shook his head and grabbed the bottle again, taking a deep pull before setting it back on the table with a thud. Who woulda imagined that tiny little nerd could have done so much damage with two scraps of metal? The little blonde was a formidable force, that was unquestionably true. Definitely the kind of person you wanted on your side rather than against you. Xehanort had obviously seen some part of that, but had grossly underestimated him; Reno would be sure not to make the same mistake. Most of the little group of would-be heroes, too. They’d all turned out much more useful than imagined. He sighed deeply, pulling out his phone as it began ringing in his pocket. He growled at the top-bright screen before mashing the button to accept the call. 

“What, yo?” he snapped into the receiver, and light, feminine laughter followed. 

“Where are you hiding, you old grump?” Kairi chuckled, “I’ve got some people who wanna come have a chat.” Reno grumbled mostly to himself, not wanting his quiet turmoil to be broken, but it seemed he had no choice in the matter. The brat would keep hassling him until she found someone else to hassle into taking her to him. After a long moment, he let out another, more defeated sigh. 

“My office, yo. Or, old office I suppose.” Reno pinched the bridge of his nose tightly as his imminent headache started to bloom. He did not want to entertain any company right now, for business or family. 

“Sending them your way. Two Guns was loitering around, he’s gonna lead them to you.” At that, the man’s head snapped up, and he bit back the wave of dizziness that accompanied the motion. 

“No, Kairi. He was there for guard duty, leave him be.” His niece’s giggle met his demand, and he snarled. He wasn’t fooling around, those fucking kids weren’t going a minute without someone watching them. 

“Relax,” Kairi breezed. “He had a backup, the other guy is staying.” More grumbling, but Reno was glad to see she was at least more pragmatic than he had initially thought. He got off the line quickly, nursing the bottle as he waited for his visitors. The part of the building he was in was a nice little walk from where he’d established his covert recovery center, yet it seemed like no time at all had passed before there was a knock at his door, and he called for them to enter without even looking up. Multiple pairs of footsteps entered his office, and he squinted hard at the bottle before gulping down one last big mouthful and finally looking at the arrivals. It was the blonde’s brother, the tall blue-haired girl, and the even taller brunette male that had come along with Kairi who were standing quietly in front of his desk, all looking mildly determined yet clearly hesitant to speak first. Reno set the bottle down heavily. 

“Yo, what do you three want? Got quite a lot goin’ on right now, as I’m sure you can imagine, yo,” he said gruffly, although he knew the line bottle on the desk told them he wasn’t doing shit about any of it yet. The girl smiled knowingly, but instead of calling him out on it, she elected herself to be the speaker for the little trio. 

“That’s got something to do with why we came,” she said as she took a half step towards the desk. “Seems like you’re going to have quite the job getting things turned around here.” 

“And we heard you might have a few job openings,” the brunette added with smirk. He locked eyes with Reno, and those eyes held an alarming degree of seriousness. The redhead stared at them blankly for nearly a solid minute before wordlessly grabbing for the whiskey again. To their credit, they all stood patiently, not breaking or backing down. They couldn’t really be serious, though. Sure, their organization took on some younger recruits every now and again, but...the blonde especially looked like such a baby, even more so standing next to the other two. Though he had thrown himself headlong into an armed and much more skilled opponent, then scaled the damn building chasing after his brother. He’d also made the judgement call Reno hadn’t been able to in the heat of the moment, eyes locked on his opponent rather than the trajectory of his bullets. He frowned deeply, opening his mouth to say no on principle, but the petite blonde spoke up then. 

“Look, here’s how I see it. If you’re smart, you’re gonna offer Roxas a better deal than the last guy, and he’s gonna end up working for you. Obviously, he and Axel seem to be a package deal and good luck to whoever tries to come between them, so you’ll have Axel, too. We’ve all been at least relatively useful during this whole thing; you can check your cameras for our credentials.” A short laugh barked from the blonde, and the girl took over, not giving Reno a chance to speak yet. 

“Kairi and Sora offered help, but they’re still just starting in school. Riku offered to help as you need him, but his focus right now is school as well. Zexion, on the other hand, has asked me to extend a proposal on his behalf since he won’t leave Demyx. He is offering to completely oversee the rebuild and restaffing of your lab, on the condition that he be in charge of it once it’s complete. He’s also offered to provide a resume if you’d like to see it. I have, it’s pretty impressive.” Reno’s mind raced to weigh the offer. Offers. Was he even going to talk to Roxas about working for him, after all this? He didn’t even know what he didn’t know about how Xehanort had been running things, he still needed to go through the man’s files... 

“Demyx said he’d do anything you need him for, although he’d rather stay away from fighting if he can. Said if nothing else, he’d start selling for you,” the brunette added with a shrug before leveling his stare at Reno again. “Then there’s us.” The blue-haired girl took another step towards the desk, her fingertips just brushing the dark wood as she spoke up again. 

“The three of us have varying levels of experience fighting, as well as other individual talents we could bring to the table. Those two would probably do best working in your former capacity,” she said with a nod of her head towards her male companions, before continuing. “And while I think that would probably be my best fit in the long run, I wanted to offer to act as your assistant until you get everything around here worked out and settled down.” Despite having been trying to come up with reasons not to agree blindly to everything that had been said, those last words from the girls lips were like a beacon of hope, a ray of light through the storm clouds of apprehension and confusion overwhelming him currently. That was exactly what he needed, and if he were being honest rather than stubborn, he needed all the help he could get right now. They didn’t need to know that, though. He ran his finger lazily around the rim of the bottle, pretending to consider, but really there was no other option. 

“Well, I don’t really have a problem handin’ over the lab, yo, I’ve got no staff there,” he finally said in a gruff, dismissive tone before looking up at the small group. “I’ll talk to Demyx, was it? Talk to him before he leaves. Same for my nephew and his little blonde. You three, though, yo,” he paused to look each of them in the eyes before he went on, “Do you understand what you’re getting yourselves into?” They didn’t even look at each other before the girl laughed lightly and answered for all of them. 

“Yes, I think we do.” The smile she gave was both sweet and sincere, and it was unexpectedly comforting. Maybe this wouldn’t be as bad an idea as he first thought. “We’re already here and running out of things to do, could we get started now?” Reno barked out a laugh, and the atmosphere settled. 

“Yeah, might as well make yourselves useful, yo. Start off with your names. I was a little too busy to remember them before.” Reno leaned back in his chair, putting his feet up on the desk and crossing his hands behind his head. The blonde stepped forward and offered a cheeky little two-fingered salute that immediately had Reno thinking more favorably of him. 

“Everybody calls me Ven,” he said, and then the brunette behind them chimed in with a quick ‘Terra,’ before the girl extended her hand towards Reno for him to shake it. 

“I’m Aqua. So you’ll take us on, then?” she asked, and Reno sat forward, took her hand, and shook it firmly once with a smirk. 

“Yeah, I think I will.”


	48. Chapter Forty-Eight

It was almost a full day later before Roxas next opened his eyes. Before he’d even really had a chance to take in his surroundings, a voice gleefully announced his return to consciousness with a shout. 

“Guys!” Roxas winced as Sora’s voice rang out sharply from somewhere near his right shoulder. “Look who decided to finally wake up!” Roxas blinked slowly as faces began to swim into sight; Riku, over Sora’s shoulder, Kairi at his side. Ventus ran up, grabbing his hand tightly. 

“You Gaia-damned psycho, I’m so glad to see your eyes open.” The room was bland but partially familiar; he was in one of the hotel rooms, still. But where- before his brain could even put together what his heart was desperately searching for, he felt a gentle touch at the back of his elbow, and whipped his head around so quickly it sent his vision spinning again. There, sitting up beside him in bed, was the proof that he hadn’t watched Axel die and that he was instead right there just inches away. No one else was there. The room fell away. There was only himself, desperately staring into Axel’s perfect, pale face and meeting his shining emerald stare. 

“Welcome back,” fell casually from a pretty convincing smirk, and it was so normal and so AXEL that it pulled a weak laugh from Roxas. He leaned forward slowly, pulling his hand away from where it had been resting and reaching up to touch the man in front of him. Fingertips traced over his angular features, and Axel’s eyes blinked closed with a small shiver before he went still under Roxas’ hand. He found his voice by the time his touch was ghosting it’s way down the delicate column of Axel’s throat, and Roxas tried to match the taller man’s ability to sound so laid-back. 

“You know, that was not how I thought that dinner was gonna end,” the blonde said, watching his hands pause at Axel’s chest, tracing invisible patterns against what looked like a hospital-issue top. A small huff of air escaped the redhead in what could have been a sort of laugh, and a vivid green eye cracked open. 

“This whole thing did not really help my already deep-rooted issues, you know,” Axel cracked, and ignored the wince Roxas gave at his words to continue, “but you going into Hulk mode might have. Not so scared of losing you when I know you can take on an entire building of people all on your own.” Roxas felt the color drain from his face. He wasn’t even remotely ready to think about everything that had happened, let alone talk about it like it was nothing. He didn’t know if he could ever get back to the life he’d been living before all of this had taken place. Was he crazy? Everything from before waking up tied to that chair seemed like a hazy, distant memory; a lifetime ago. He saw before he actually felt his hands gripping fistfuls of Axel’s clothing, and it took him a good deal of effort to relax his trembling fingers and smooth the fabric back down. 

“Axel, I watched...they made me...I SAW you die,” Roxas stammered quietly, flashes of the dark room bursting into his vision, and he wanted to be sick. He could feel Axel’s chest rising and falling under his hands as he breathed, yet he couldn’t see him past the memory of the redhead lying still on the table in the screen. Then, a hand was gripping his elbow tightly, and another was waving gently in front of his eyes, brushing away the sight. 

“S’okay, Roxy, I’m right here. I’m fine, everything’s fine. You got ‘em all, tiger.” He laughed, and despite it sounding a little strained, it was again so blessedly normal that it helped to soothe Roxas’ anxiety. Then a voice from behind him shattered the bubble that he and Axel had shared, and he was reminded that they had an audience. 

“Almost all of them,” Ventus grumbled, before he leaned over and rubbed Roxas’ shoulder. “Don’t worry about it, we can fill you in on everything after you’ve had a little more time. I’m gonna go let everyone else know you’re awake.” He turned and headed quickly out of sight, and Sora got to his feet then. 

“I’m really glad to see you moving, Rox. You scared us all for a little, there.” Riku nodded quietly, and Kairi leaned over him to give his cheek a quick peck. 

“We’re gonna give you two a little privacy. Make sure you don’t tangle up your IVs,” she whispered teasingly, and then the three of them quickly followed Ventus, leaving Roxas and Axel truly to themselves. Roxas found himself inspecting Axel closely, taking in all the visible damage that had been done to this man who meant so much to him. It was almost funny; before they had officially been a couple, that was all he had wanted, but from the second they’d become one, all he’d wanted was for Axel to be alive. Were they still a couple? Did all of the events that had fallen change that? Axel was just sitting there, rubbing his thumb gently in circles near Roxas’ elbow where he’d previously been holding him, patiently waiting on the blonde to say something. 

“I’m so fucking glad to see you alive,” he blurted, instantly feeling tears well in his eyes. He buried his face against the taller man’s chest, refusing to let himself be anything but glad that Axel was in front of him and breathing. “I don’t know where we stand or what’s going on or what you’ll want after this but I really.” He couldn’t help himself; he kissed Axel’s chest, already just under his lips. “REALLY.” Another kiss, lips lingering to breathe the word against the fabric that separated their skin. “Can’t tell you how much.” He felt fingers winding into his hair as he left the next kiss, inching his way higher up on the redhead’s chest. “I appreciate your breathing.” In a move that was so synchronized it was like they’d been doing it for years, the hand in his hair tightened and tugged him upward just as he tilted his head and surged forward, bringing their lips together. The kiss eased his fears and anxiety more firmly than words would have; Axel wasn’t scared away. The redhead’s tongue was insistent, stroking Roxas’ lips apart and delving past them with a possessive need that Roxas blissfully submitted to. There was no room for his fears and insecurities in the wake of the fire Axel built in him. Warm hands slid from his hair to cradle his face like he was fragile and precious at the same time teeth scraped his bottom lip, nipping gently before Axel’s tongue was there soothing the spot. A small whimper escaped him, not from pain but from desperation for more, and Axel seemed to understand. A heart monitor nearby announced the uptick in his heart rate when Axel’s fingers stroked down his jawline and neck, over his shoulders, and then one hand went back to the back of his neck while the other continued petting down his side. Roxas let his tongue twist and dance with Axel’s, and his hands were pulling the redhead closer, pressing them as tightly together as he could manage. He felt like the burning desire left by Axel’s touch was incinerating bad memories and doubts alike, leaving him feeling high and giddy, and he could find no reason for them to stop what they were doing. That is, until the door slammed open suddenly, sending the pair jolting apart in surprise. An plump, older, serious-looking woman in a white coat had rushed into the room only to stop dead upon seeing the two of them getting tangled up in one another. A stern look quickly overcame the shock on her face and she continued her path to their bedside. 

“Now, do I need to separate you two?” she asked in mock severity, tutting as she busied herself with the monitors and cords on Axel’s side of the bed. “Look at you both, your monitors both spiked and you nearly gave me a heart attack. It is good to see you awake, though, dearie,” The woman threw a quick wink at the now blushing Roxas, more than slightly embarrassed to be caught manhandling her patient. Axel was obviously much more familiar with her presence. 

“Awh, Nanny, don’t go embarrassing him. I want him to do that again,” he whined, earning a good natured swat from the woman before she moved around to where Roxas was trying to discreetly untangle the cords and wires that were attached to him. When he twisted a certain way, however, a sharp stab of pain shot through his chest, and he curled in on himself with a gasp. The woman’s hands were quickly fluttering over him, easing him gently to lay back against the pillows. Axel’s face appeared over him, looking worried, and his own hands hovered over Roxas as if he were afraid to touch him. “Roxas?” The panic in his voice made Roxas’ own heart ache, but before he could even attempt an answer, the woman was shushing at Axel in a motherly fashion. 

“Oh, you poor dear. Did you pull your stitches? Let me have a look.” Roxas nodded wordlessly, but was pretty sure the woman would have started working on him whether he had or not. She pulled aside his own hospital-issue covering and exposed a large area of his chest that was densely packed with cotton and gauze. The blonde found himself staring in shock as her fingers deftly began exposing wound after wound, some small and starting to heal as well as some much more graphic ones, pulled closed with neat lines of medical stitches. Axel looked paler than usual, but his eyes never left Roxas’ face, clearly looking for any sign of new pain. There the pain was, suddenly; the woman had gotten to the largest swath of bandages and when she peeled them back, fresh blood blossomed on his skin. The nurse gasped and pressed a handful of gauze firmly against the area while pushing a red button on one of the monitors with her other hand. Roxas had looked away when she applied pressure to the spot and found himself locked into Axel’s stare. His bedmate hadn’t looked away from Roxas’ face during the entire ordeal, a worried crease between slender brows and eyes unwaveringly focused on him. The intensity he saw there made his breath catch; suddenly, it was like he could see an entire lifetime together with Axel in that look alone, the certainty of it hitting Roxas like a train. He belonged with Axel, needed him like he needed to breathe, and Axel belonged with him the same way. The pain faded almost entirely, even as he vaguely registered that two more people had hurriedly entered the room and were helping the first woman to repair the damage. His face stretched into a wide grin, and he beamed brightly up at Axel, whose concern shifted to confusion, then settled into an easy, brilliant smile of his own. He was speaking before Roxas could open his mouth to say the words he knew he needed to. 

“You know, Roxy,” he began, sounding like he was holding back a laugh as he watched Roxas struggle to contain himself, “I almost fucked things up because I was holding back and not jumping right in like I should have. I’m not making that mistake twice.” Axel leaned forward slowly but purposefully until his forehead was pressed gently against the smaller blonde’s, carefully tilted away from where the hands were working on his chest. He breathed Roxas’ own words against the smaller man’s slightly parted lips before claiming them once more in a searing kiss. 

“I love you.”

—-END—-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soo...good news or bad news?
> 
>  
> 
> Let’s start with the bad news: yep, that’s the end. Really.
> 
> ...of book one. 😅
> 
>  
> 
> Good news? Book two. Already in the works, coming soon to tie up some of those pesky, unanswered questions. Bringing back old characters and pulling forward some new ones, and hopefully some of y’all will stick around to see how things turn out.
> 
> Cherry on top? Here’s a brief excerpt to *crosses fingers* get y’all hyped for it. 😅
> 
>  
> 
> Book Two Excerpt:
> 
> Namine wiped a thin, pale wrist across her forehead to try to wipe away the sweat beading there. When her brothers had said it would be hot, she had believed them, but she didn’t know exactly HOW hot it was going to be. The apartment she and Xion has found was perfect, cheap...and on the fifth floor. As of that moment, all the help her brothers had assured them would arrive were nowhere to be found, and the two girls had begun the grueling work themselves.  
> “Do you think the boys are EVER going to show up?” she heard her twin huff as she bounced out of the building and back to the parking lot to pick up her next load. Namine shook her head with a soft smile.  
> “You know those guys, they can’t ever seem to follow the schedule,” she said amusedly, hefting up the box she had been getting ready to take up. “Besides, we’ve always worked best when it was just the two of us.”  
> “You’re not wrong about that,” Xion laughed, taking it upon herself to grab one of the larger, heavier kitchen boxes. “Oh well. I’ll eat all that pizza myself, fuck ‘em.”  
> “Ouch, I heard that,” the girls heard a male voice whine as it approached them, and then Roxas wove his way into sight through the parking lot, with a ridiculously tall, lanky redhead following behind him. “See, Axe? I told you; they’re little monsters, no matter how cute they may appe- hey!” Xion had tugged open the kitchen box she had been holding and threw a wooden spoon with surprising accuracy into Roxas’ stomach. He doubled over while the other three broke out into giggles and the redhead, presumably the boyfriend Roxas had told them about, leaned down to prod at him gently.  
> “Well, ladies, I’ve seen him live through much worse, I’m sure he won’t die. Why don’t you put me to work until-“ Roxas spluttered indignantly as he jumped to his feet.  
> “You’re supposed to be on my side! That was your chance to get us out of all the heavy lifting.” Namine saw the headlock coming before Roxas did; she hid her laughter with a hand as their older brother, Ventus, stepped up next to Roxas and threw an arm around his neck, pulling him down again.  
> “You’re not getting out of that, brother dear,” he said sweetly while Roxas struggled in his hold. “Hey, girls, long time no see!” Namine waved, and then several more bodies began to trickle forward, and introductions started to become necessary.

**Author's Note:**

> Like what you see here? I’ve got more!
> 
> Finished:  
> There’s An App For That  
> Into The Unknown  
> In progress:  
> Discord Required  
> Got It Memorized?  
> A Pirate’s Life For Me
> 
> Plus more to come! ❤️


End file.
